Donald Trump said on Thursday that he asked Elon Musk to reverse restrictions on Starshield, the military-grade version of SpaceX’s satellite internet service, in Ukraine.
The Wall Street Journal first reported the call, citing US officials who said Trump spoke to Musk on Wednesday. Speed limits that SpaceX imposed on Starshield on Oct 14 had slowed Ukrainian drone missions and battlefield communications for over a week, Ukrainian officials said.
Trump would not confirm the call to reporters at the White House on Thursday. “I don’t want to comment on it, whether I called, or whether somebody else called,” he said. “The bottom line, he put it back.”
Ukrainian officials disputed that account on Friday. President Volodymyr Zelensky said the speed limits remained in place and service had not been restored. “We hope that the SpaceX and American administration will do it… We count on such decisions,” he said, according to CNN.
The disruption has complicated Ukraine’s drone operations and its campaign of medium-range strikes against Russian military logistics, Ukrainian officials said.
Source: CNN
