Zelensky says Musk-owned satellite system still restricted in Ukraine

Axios · 10/17/2026, 11:26:59 PM

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine's use of the Elon Musk -owned SpaceX satellite system remains partially restricted, despite earlier signs this week that it had been fully restored. Why it matters: The current restrictions limit the Ukrainian military from using drones to intercept Russian attack drones and from using its drones to send supplies to soldiers on the front lines, Zelensky said. The intrigue: Ukrainian officials say they are still scrambling to determine whether the restrictions result from a political decision by the Trump administration or Musk. Ukrainian officials have heard different versions of what happened, with the Trump administration and SpaceX executives accusing each other. "SpaceX as a company tells us it is a technical problem. But our contacts in the company say it is coming from the White House. When we ask the White House, they say it is Elon," a Ukrainian official told Axios. Musk said in a Wednesday X post that the U.S. government was involved in disrupting Starshield. "Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the US government. Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS," he wrote. President Trump said on Friday that the White House was not involved in restricting Ukraine's use of the system. Behind the scenes: The Telegraph reported Friday that Musk proposed to Trump throttling the Starlink and Starshield satellite networks used by the Ukrainian military. A source familiar with the discussion told Axios that Trump didn't push back on Elon's idea. A White House official denied the Telegraph's account. "This is totally false. As President Trump said, we didn't slow down Starlink at all, and the service is currently operational," the official said. State of play: But the service is not fully operational. Before the restrictions, the Starlink and Starshield network operated even on drones that reached 400 kilometers per hour. Now it is restricted to 161 kilometers per hour,