Reports say Elon Musk ordered the slowdown of the Starlink service Ukraine's drones rely on, though he says the US decides. Should one company have that much power in a war?
The Wall Street Journal and CBS News report that a decision by Musk led to the cap, which cut out drone terminals moving faster than about 160 km/h. Musk says limits are decided by the US military and the president; Donald Trump and Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth say they didn't order it. Ukraine says the cap is costing lives.
What happened
Ukraine says Starshield, the military-grade Starlink service its forces use, was restricted in mid-October, cutting out terminals on drones moving faster than about 160 km/h. On 20 October the Wall Street Journal reported that Musk personally ordered the slowdown, and CBS News sources said a decision by Musk led to it. Musk posted that any limits are decided by the US military and ultimately the president. Trump said he didn't know who was responsible; Pete Hegseth said the US hadn't pulled anything back and pointed to terms of service.
Why people disagree
One side says no single firm or owner should be able to limit a country's military communications: Zelensky says it will cost many lives, there is no working alternative to Starlink, and US senators from both parties want an investigation. The other side says Starshield is a private product with terms of service that users must follow, and that the US government, which pays for it and controls access, is the one that decides how it is used.
What's still unclear
Who actually made the decision is disputed: the WSJ and CBS point to Musk, Musk points to the US government, and Trump and the Pentagon deny ordering it. Reports differ on the exact speed limit and on whether full service has been restored.
Sources
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