SpaceX CEO Elon Musk stated on Thursday, October 15, 2026, that the United States government and the military are responsible for speed restrictions on Starshield, the military-grade version of the Starlink satellite network used by the Ukrainian military. Musk wrote on the social media platform X that the U.S. government owns and controls Starshield systems and that any usage limits are decided by the U.S. military and the president.
The restrictions, introduced on Tuesday, October 13, reportedly capped connection speeds at 100 mph (160 km/h). According to Ukrainian officials, these limits cause weapons traveling above that speed to lose connectivity. The service was partially restored by Wednesday evening, according to Ukraine’s former defense minister Mykhailo Fedorov. The outage occurred as Russia conducted strikes across Ukraine that killed several people and left at least 600,000 people without electricity.
The disruption has prompted a range of responses from international officials. Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski accused Musk of "playing politics" on Wednesday, while an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Serhiy Beskrestnov, suggested the restrictions were related to the current political situation. However, a U.S. official told Axios that the administration of President Donald Trump was not involved in the Starlink limitations.
The speed restrictions affect the Ukrainian military's ability to operate high-speed equipment, including drones used to guide strikes and defend Ukrainian airspace. According to an adviser on military technology to President Zelensky, several combat missions failed on Tuesday evening as a result of the connection loss. Zelensky stated that the shutdown would lead to deaths. The cap of 100 mph (160 km/h) targets faster-moving weaponry, which requires real-time satellite guidance.
The Ukrainian defense infrastructure has relied on Starlink for government and military communications since the Russian invasion began in 2022. While specific numbers of affected units were not reported, the outage coincided with a Russian aerial assault that affected at least 600,000 residents' access to electricity. The situation establishes a precedent regarding the control of private technology adapted for military use. Musk noted that Starshield is controlled by the U.S. government, while Starlink is a civilian commercial service. The tension comes as President Trump has reportedly expressed frustration regarding Ukraine’s long-range strikes on Russian energy infrastructure. Ukrainian officials continue to request the total removal of the speed limits.