'Ukraine Broke the Terms, Used Starlink for Deadly Drone Attacks' — Musk Admits Slowing the Service

Elon Musk has admitted that Starlink satellite internet service was slowed down in Ukraine. The step by his company SpaceX had disrupted Ukraine's military operations, in a country that has long relied on the service for its defence against Russia.

Before Musk's admission on social media on Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that the speeds of Starlink and Starshield satellite connections had been restored to their previous levels. Restrictions imposed last week had disrupted military activities on the front line for more than a week.

Since last week, questions had been raised over who ordered the disruption to Starlink service. Ukraine has depended for years on the satellite internet system built by Musk to counter Russian attacks, so the imposition of speed limits became a major cause of concern for Kyiv.

Writing on X on Saturday, Zelensky said, 'The speed is now at the required level.' He said restoration work began overnight and reached the required level by Saturday morning. This has improved frontline logistics supply and defence operations against Russia's jet-engine-powered Shahed drones.

After the restoration in Ukraine was announced, Musk spoke out about the Starlink speed limits. In a post on X on Saturday, he admitted that his company SpaceX had reduced the speed of the Starlink satellite internet service.

Musk wrote that using the civilian commercial service Starlink to carry out offensive drone attacks intended to kill people was never permitted, and should never be. He said Ukraine's military violated Starlink's terms of use by using it in offensive drone attacks meant to kill people, and that the loophole was closed last week.

Musk claimed, however, that control over the changes made to Starshield, the military version of Starlink, rests with the US government. Starshield is one of the foundations of Ukraine's drone operations and communications system. At the same time, he spoke in defence of SpaceX's role in strengthening Ukraine's defence since Russia's full-scale invasion began in February 2022.

Last week's restrictions on Starshield caused concern among Ukrainian military and government officials. Military commanders said drones had been lost and various operations disrupted as a result. That frontline disruption later intensified efforts to get the service restored.

Meanwhile, the satellite dispute has ended in the middle of a new US diplomatic initiative to stop the war. On Wednesday, Russia agreed to resume trilateral talks with Washington and Kyiv next month. On Friday, Kyiv and Moscow also agreed to a local ceasefire around Oleshky, the Russian-occupied, war-ravaged town in Ukraine's southern Kherson region. The ceasefire was mediated by US First Lady Melania Trump.

The episode has further increased tension between Kyiv and Washington. Earlier, President Donald Trump's alleged understanding with Moscow over diesel imports from Russia had already strained relations between the two countries. Ukraine had viewed that understanding as a betrayal.

Ukraine's Defence Minister Yevhenii Khmara credited 'direct dialogue' and Zelensky's diplomatic engagement with Washington for the restoration. He said the most important thing is how much the outcome helps 'our front line, our military, drone operations, logistics supply and communications system'.

Trump has claimed that he did not make the decision to limit Starlink service. He has also said Musk should not be blamed for it. US Vice President JD Vance has hinted at coordination between Musk and the White House. But Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth have denied any administration involvement. On the question of who was responsible, Washington itself has offered differing accounts.

Meanwhile, local officials said on Saturday that a missile strike on the town of Lozova in Ukraine's Kharkiv region killed one person and injured two. Moscow-appointed authorities in cities across Russian-occupied Crimea said on Saturday that power outages followed overnight Ukrainian attacks there. Ukraine's General Staff said on Saturday that its forces had struck a chemical plant in the Russian city of Tolyatti, which produces materials used in rocket fuel. Tolyatti's mayor, Ilya Sukhikh, said industrial installations in the city were damaged in the night attack. Even with the service restored, attacks and counter-attacks on the battlefield have not stopped — and attention will now turn to the next chapter of the Starlink dispute.