Isophoric News · Thursday, October 22, 2026
Officials and reports differ on who ordered the Starlink slowdown in Ukraine
Ukrainian officials reported speed limits on SpaceX's Starlink and Starshield services in Ukraine in mid-October, and President Volodymyr Zelensky said Wednesday the service was "still limited," CBS News reported. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday that Ukraine's access "is governed by a private commercial contract," and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday that terms of service apply and that Starlink has the option to make those decisions, The Hill reported; President Trump told reporters Wednesday, "I don't know who did it but I was not involved." Reuters reported on Oct. 15 that Pentagon officials received an order to limit Starshield "from inside the White House," and the Wall Street Journal reported on Oct. 20 that Elon Musk ordered the restrictions, according to Snopes. Musk wrote on X on Oct. 14 that limits on the military-grade Starshield are decided by the U.S. military and ultimately the president, while Starlink is a commercial service limited to civilian and defensive use. Snopes said it could not verify the Reuters, Telegraph or Journal reports because they relied on anonymous sources, and that SpaceX did not respond to its request for comment.