Trump administration offers mixed messages on limits to Ukraine's Starshield access

A sudden slowdown of Starshield, the military version of SpaceX's Starlink service that underpins Ukraine's drone operations and communications, has set off finger-pointing inside the Trump administration over who was responsible. Ukrainian commanders reported lost drones and disrupted missions. President Donald Trump said Thursday that the service was back at full speed, but President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the Hudson Institute on Friday that some limits remained. Senator Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat, has opened an inquiry into how the systems were throttled, according to PBS NewsHour.

Officials have given conflicting accounts. Trump says he did not order any change and doubts Elon Musk did either, though he acknowledged the service had been down and suggested Musk restored it. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth both deny any government role and describe Starlink and Starshield as decisions for a private company. Hegseth also cited unspecified terms of service. Vice President JD Vance called Musk a private executive reluctant to be caught between two warring states.

Musk, on X, pointed the other way, saying the U.S. military and ultimately the president control Starshield speeds and usage.

Summarized by PolitiKool from PBS NewsHour’s reporting. Read the full story at PBS NewsHour →