Trump asked Musk to lift Starlink throttle on Ukraine, officials say

Key Points

1. Trump phoned Elon Musk to request removal of speed limits on military-grade Starlink in Ukraine, officials said.
2. The system worked closer to normal Thursday, shortly after the call, U.S. and Ukrainian officials said.
3. The throttle had left some Ukrainian strike drones and interceptors unable to counter Russian attacks.

The latest:

The military-grade version of Starlink that Ukraine relies on along the frontline was performing more normally Thursday, shortly after President Trump telephoned Elon Musk and asked him to lift restrictions the SpaceX chief had imposed, U.S. and Ukrainian officials said. Trump told Musk he was frustrated that speeds remained capped, according to officials. Some Ukrainian officials said the service still fell short of full functionality.

Details:

• The call: Trump called Musk directly and asked him to remove restrictions on the military-grade Starlink tier used by Ukrainian forces, U.S. officials told The Wall Street Journal. Trump said during the conversation that he was frustrated the system’s speeds remained capped at around 100 miles per hour, according to officials.
• The operational effect: The speed limit rendered some of Ukraine’s offensive drones and interceptors powerless against Russian attacks, officials said. Ukrainian forces use Starlink to coordinate and operate along the frontline, making the throttle a direct constraint on strike and air-defense missions rather than an administrative matter.
• What changed Thursday: U.S. and Ukrainian officials said the system was working more normally soon after the Trump-Musk conversation. Some Ukrainian officials cautioned that functionality was not fully restored, saying the service was operating at higher speeds than under the cap but still short of its previous performance.
• Expert assessment: Michael Kofman of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace assessed that lifting the throttle would significantly enable Ukraine’s strike capabilities at operational depths and its push to scale up jet-powered interceptors. He said Ukrainian military units had told him early tests suggested the system was working more regularly.
• Disputed account: The call followed a Wall Street Journal report that Musk ordered the slowdown. SpaceX and the White House have given differing accounts of whether the world’s richest man acted alone or at the administration’s request, leaving responsibility for the original order unresolved.
• Trump’s denials: The White House referred the Journal to Trump’s recent denials that he had asked Musk to throttle Starlink’s speeds or that he knew who issued the order. The Journal previously reported that Trump and Musk spoke about Ukraine and Starlink on the day the slowdown became public.
• Trump’s intent: Trump had told aides and allies this week that he wanted the Starlink slowdown reversed, officials said, indicating the phone call followed days of internal pressure rather than a single sudden decision.
• No comment: Musk, SpaceX and Ukraine’s Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the call or on the state of the system.

Background:

Starlink, operated by Musk’s SpaceX, provides satellite connectivity that Ukrainian units depend on for frontline communications and drone operations. The military-grade tier at the center of the dispute is distinct from the commercial service.

Between the lines:

A presidential phone call, rather than a contract or a formal order, appears to have moved the system back toward normal operation — a reflection of how far Ukraine’s frontline connectivity rests on one company’s decisions. The unresolved dispute over who ordered the slowdown, with SpaceX and the White House offering differing accounts, leaves that dependency without a clear line of accountability.

What’s next

Whether Ukrainian units report full restoration or only partial speeds in the coming days, and whether SpaceX or the White House clarifies who issued the original throttle order, are the next concrete signals.