Ukraine Warupdated 16m ago2 min read
White House Orders Pentagon To Slow Ukraine Starshield, Reuters Reports
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White House ordered slowing Starshield for Ukraine, Reuters reports citing officials. Pentagon leaders received the directive to curb Starshield speed from White House.
White House Starshield limits
A Reuters report said two US officials and a Western official briefed on the matter told Reuters that Pentagon leaders received a message directing them to slow the SpaceX Starshield service used by Ukraine for battlefield communications and drone operations. A senior US official told Reuters, "No such request was ever made by the president," while Reuters also reported that the order originated "inside the White House".
Ukrainian officials said Starlink military receivers stopped working in Ukraine when mounted on fast-moving objects, and a Ukrainian Defense Ministry source said the receivers began working again while in motion but only at speeds not exceeding 100 mph (160 kph). Elon Musk said on X that Starshield systems are owned by and under the control of the U.S. government, and that any speed or usage limits are decided by the U.S. armed forces or the president.
Trump, Zelensky, and blame
President Donald Trump denied limiting Ukraine access to Starlink's sister internet network Starshield after it restricted drone speed, saying, "It wasn't me and I don't think it was [Starlink owner] Elon [Musk]." Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview with journalist Piers Morgan, "People will certainly die if these attacks continue and Starlink does not work… I really hope this is a technical error, I don’t know, but we are demanding the restoration of the service."
Musk told reporters that Starshield was managed by the US government and that the Pentagon could have been responsible, while Reuters reported on Thursday that the order had come from inside the White House. The BBC reported that Starlink restricted speed limits to 100mph (160km/h) on Tuesday night, and the BBC said some 600,000 in Ukraine were left without power as communications and energy facilities used by Ukraine's military were also hit in the deadly attacks.
War impact and next moves
Russian authorities reported that Ukrainian drone and missile attacks hit a fuel refinery in the Ryazan region southeast of Moscow, and the Russian Defense Ministry said drone fragments fell at the refinery site, starting a fire. Zelensky announced that his army would resume striking Russian oil refineries, stepping back from the energy ceasefire that President Trump had unilaterally announced, and the BBC said the US had previously warned it could withhold sharing intelligence if Ukraine did not stop hitting Russian oil refineries.
A bipartisan group of US senators signed a letter demanding an investigation into the disruptions, and the letter said, "Restrictions reportedly degraded Ukraine's ability to conduct defensive operations against Russian drone and missile attacks on civilian infrastructure." The BBC reported that Zelensky told the European Council that the war will cost €155bn next year, with at least €70bn needed to come from the EU for defence and weapons, as Macron said Europe was working to help Ukraine with its satellite and early warning systems.