Elon Musk personally ordered a slowdown of Starshield, the military-grade version of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite service used by Ukraine, disrupting drone operations and sparking panic in Kyiv, according to U.S. officials and people familiar with the matter cited by The Wall Street Journal on Oct. 20 and 21 .

The restrictions, imposed around Oct. 14, capped connection speeds for Ukrainian hardware, causing terminals to lose connectivity when devices exceeded 160 km/h—later reported as below 130 km/h—rendering attack and interceptor drones ineffective, the Journal and other outlets reported . Ukrainian commanders said the disruption led to failed missions and lost drones, hindering both offensive and defensive operations against Russian forces .

Musk and President Donald Trump discussed the decision by phone after it became public, with one source claiming they had also spoken beforehand, the Journal reported . Trump denied responsibility, stating on Oct. 20 he did not know who was behind the restrictions and intended to investigate . Musk initially blamed the U.S. military and Trump, writing on X that Starshield systems are “owned and controlled by the US government” and that limits are decided by the military and “ultimately POTUS” .

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the Pentagon had not ordered any changes to Starshield coverage, adding that SpaceX sets its own terms of service . Secretary of State Marco Rubio also denied U.S. involvement, stating Trump had no prior knowledge and cannot direct SpaceX . Ukrainian officials, including Chargé d’Affaires Denys Sienik, said they were still awaiting official explanations from the Pentagon and SpaceX on whether full connectivity would be restored .

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy raised the issue with Rubio on Oct. 20, stating the service “needs to be restored,” while Rubio had said three days earlier that his understanding was it had already been restored . Zelenskyy previously accused SpaceX of a “planned operation” to restrict speeds, which he said applied only inside Ukraine .