U.S. President Donald Trump has said he believes SpaceX CEO Elon Musk restored Ukraine’s access to the Starlink satellite system, adding that he would speak with Musk if that turns out not to be the case.
When reporters asked about Starlink’s status in Ukraine on Friday, Trump said, “I’ve heard it was fixed, but if it’s not, I'll speak to him.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told ABC on Friday that despite Trump’s earlier remarks on Thursday that restrictions had been lifted, Starlink was still not working properly.
“We are currently not observing any lifting of speed limits on Starlink,” presidential adviser Serhii Beskrestnov wrote on Telegram on Friday.
“There are isolated instances where Starlink may travel slightly faster than the speed limit, but this is likely due to the SpaceX algorithm or specific usage conditions.”
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on Thursday, citing U.S. and Ukrainian officials, that Trump called Musk and asked him to lift restrictions on the war-torn country’s use of Starlink after Zelenskyy said the slowdown was hampering defensive efforts against Russia.
When asked on Thursday whether there had been a conversation with Musk, Trump told reporters: “I don’t want to comment on it … whether I called or whether somebody else called, doesn’t make any difference. I guess the bottom line is [he] put it back.”
Ukraine uses Starlink for drone operations and battlefield communications.
Talks With Rubio
Zelenskyy said on Thursday that he hoped to talk with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the coming days to resolve the issue.
Rubio had said that Kyiv’s access to Starlink is decided by its parent company, SpaceX, and Musk, not the White House. The U.S. president has denied any personal involvement in the decision concerning the slowdown.
‘Private Commercial Contract’
During a visit to India on Wednesday, Rubio said that Starlink “is governed by a private commercial contract as to how their stuff can be used and what speeds they'll allow it to be used at.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks to the media after a German–Ukrainian business forum in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Oct. 4, 2026. Dan Bashakov/AP Photo
Zelenskyy said earlier this week that an instruction came from the White House, although this was denied by the administration.
‘Very Dangerous’ for Ukrainians
Speaking to Fox News on Wednesday, Zelenskyy said that Starshield was “still limited,” but that U.S. intelligence sharing was working again.
“That was crucial for us; that was very dangerous for us not to get early warning information after ballistic attacks from Russians. Now, it works—that’s good,” he said, adding that Rubio had told him he would work with his team to unblock remaining restrictions to the system.
When he departed for the first leg of his trip last Saturday, Rubio said no one had ordered the slowdown, and questioned the Ukrainian president’s version of events.
“I’m not sure Zelenskyy knows what he’s talking about, but it wasn’t deliberate,” Rubio said.
“We have nothing to do with that. I don’t—the United States, nobody ordered that Starlink speed to be slowed down. It sort of happened, but my understanding is it’s been restored. It’s back to where it was before.”
An artilleryman of the Special Rifle Police Battalion of Zaporizhzhia region sets up a Starlink satellite internet system at a position amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the frontline in Donetsk region, Ukraine, on Oct. 16, 2026. Stringer/Reuters
‘Ukraine Wants Starshield Access’
A point of confusion is the difference between SpaceX’s Starshield and Starlink products. Starshield is a military-grade version of Starlink developed for the Pentagon. Zelenskyy said that both Starlink and Starshield had been slowed down in Ukraine.
“Starshield is a contract with the U.S. military. It has nothing to do with Ukraine,” Rubio said.
“I know Ukraine wants access to Starshield. They do not have Starshield now.
“They’ve asked for access to it in order to conduct deep strikes inside of Russia. They do not have access to it at this moment. Those are two different products.”
Musk commented in an Oct. 14 X post, saying: “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.
“Starlink is a commercial service owned and controlled by SpaceX. Usage of Starlink is limited to civilian or defensive activities and cannot be used for offensive military action, as doing so would be inappropriate for a commercial company.”
Trump initially cast doubt on whether any slowdown had occurred.
“It wasn’t us. I checked it this morning. They say it’s the same as it always has been,” the president told reporters on Oct. 16. “I don’t know if it was anybody because it wasn’t me, and I don’t think it was Elon.”
When reporters asked on Oct. 19 whether he had investigated who was responsible for the slowdown in Ukraine, Trump said, “I don’t know who it was, but I'd like to find out, yes.”
Relations between the United States and Ukraine have recently deteriorated after Trump announced a deal to buy Russian diesel and waived fresh sanctions against Moscow in a bid to lower fuel prices for Americans.
Trump has also told Kyiv to stop attacking Russian refineries and urged Ukrainians to replace Zelenskyy as its leader, writing in an Oct. 18. social media post that the Ukrainian president “doesn’t want to end this war, and probably never did.”
The White House has made numerous bids to end the conflict, which escalated when Russia launched a full-scale invasion of its neighbor in February 2022.
The war showed no sign of abating on Thursday, as Ukraine sent hundreds of drones toward Moscow, while Russia pounded Kyiv with ballistic missiles.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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