Trump Asked Musk to Lift Ukraine Military Starlink Speed Limits

President Donald Trump called Elon Musk Wednesday, Oct. 21, asking him to lift speed limits on Starlink service used by Ukraine’s military, as Ukrainian officials gave mixed accounts of service recovery.

U.S. and Ukrainian officials described the satellite system as operating more normally Thursday, Oct. 22. Some Ukrainian officials said speeds had improved markedly, while others said some military units remained subject to the earlier limits. The accounts differed on whether the improvement had reached every military unit.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., announced Thursday that he would investigate whether Starlink reduced Ukraine’s communications capacity without advance notice. He also will examine the Pentagon’s reliance on SpaceX for critical satellite communications.

The inquiry links the battlefield effect of the limits to a U.S. defense concern: the Pentagon’s dependence on SpaceX for a critical communications service. The Thursday accounts described improved overall operation but continued restrictions for some units, leaving the extent of the recovery uneven.