U.S. President Donald Trump said Oct. 23 he might contact SpaceX CEO Elon Musk if Ukraine’s satellite problems persisted, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said limits on Starlink and Starshield remained in place.
Trump told reporters he had not spoken with Musk and had heard the service was fixed. He said he might step in if problems continued, adding, “If there is a problem, I’ll get it straightened out.”
Zelenskyy said the service policies and speed limits had made conditions harder for Ukrainian forces on the front, in a statement posted on his official website. The Associated Press reported that Ukrainian commanders linked the restrictions to drone losses and disrupted operations. AP describes Starshield as SpaceX’s military-grade version of Starlink.
The Wall Street Journal reported, citing U.S. officials, that Trump called Musk to discuss Ukraine’s satellite access restrictions. The Kyiv Independent dated the reported call to Oct. 21; the account is unverified and conflicts with Trump’s statement two days later that he had not spoken with Musk. EconoTimes previously covered Ukraine’s account that the Starlink cap remained.
The Associated Press also reported differing explanations from U.S. officials. Vice President JD Vance said it was understandable that Musk would not want to enter a war between two state actors without U.S. government direction. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth denied administration involvement, AP reported.
