On Friday, Trump told reporters that neither he nor SpaceX chief Elon Musk bore any responsibility for the Starlink service disruption that had affected Ukraine earlier that week. The remarks came as disagreements between Trump and Zelenskyy over resumed strikes targeting Russian oil refineries had placed the two leaders at an impasse, with the proposed energy ceasefire in doubt and Trump stating he had played no part in authorising the attacks.
A denial was put on record — Trump stated no such action had ever been taken. Speaking with reporters on Friday while travelling to a rally in Georgia, Trump said he had learned about the matter through news coverage that same morning. He added that, based on his understanding, the service was most likely still operational.
When a reporter raised the question of Musk's possible role, Trump told the press he had no knowledge of any involvement, stating that neither he nor Musk had made such a request, to the best of his understanding. A White House official separately echoed that position on a broadcast news outlet, indicating that no such request had originated from Trump.
On Wednesday, Ukraine's armed forces reported they had lost connectivity to the Starlink military service — a satellite communications network the country depends on to coordinate operations during its conflict with Russia. According to a person with knowledge of the arrangement, connectivity through Starlink was restricted for any object moving above 100 miles per hour, a threshold that left Ukrainian drone units, fixed-wing aircraft, and rotary-wing platforms without access to the service.
Those remarks from Trump followed the publication of a report — carried by a news outlet with an established track record — in which Musk was reported to have put forward the notion of throttling Starlink connectivity across Ukraine. Certain Ukrainian officials, speaking at the time, raised the possibility that the order limiting access had originated in Washington.
Musk's initial response was to direct the question toward Trump rather than address it directly. In a post on X, Musk stated that SpaceX holds ownership and operational control of Starlink as a commercial service, and that any restrictions on speed or usage fall under the authority of the US military and, ultimately, the president. Musk also put forward the position that Starlink access is restricted to civilian or defensive purposes, adding that deploying the technology in support of offensive military operations would be at odds with what a commercial company ought to do.
Several Republican senators raised concerns earlier that week about reports indicating Starlink service interruptions had reduced Ukraine's capacity to defend against drone and missile strikes targeting civilian infrastructure. The group addressed a letter to Platte Moring, the Pentagon's inspector general, calling for a prompt investigation into the incidents given what they described as potentially life-threatening consequences.
On Friday, Zelenskyy indicated that the armed forces' access to Starlink's satellite internet network had yet to be fully restored. At a gathering of European leaders in Brussels, Zelenskyy put forward a request for €70 billion in EU funding to support Ukraine's military operations against Russia during the coming year.
Zelenskyy's comments followed by several hours a statement from Trump, who told a broadcaster that Ukraine's resumed attacks on Russian oil refineries were pushing up global oil prices and constituted, in his view, a disgrace — remarks that came against the backdrop of a proposed energy ceasefire between the two countries that had not held.
