'He Put It Back': Donald Trump Reportedly Called Elon Musk as Public Ukraine Starshield Story Falls Apart

Ukraine said on Saturday, 24 October, that Starlink and Starshield connections were working at much higher speeds, days after US President Donald Trump reportedly called Elon Musk to lift restrictions affecting Ukrainian military operations. Defence Minister Yevhen Khmara said satellite equipment maintained stable connections while travelling above 400km/h (249mph).

The announcement followed a week of disruption for Ukrainian forces using the SpaceX systems. On Friday, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had said the restrictions remained in place, despite Trump's earlier assertion that Musk had restored service. Ukraine's Defence Ministry has not confirmed that every affected connection is fully operational.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Trump called the SpaceX chief on Wednesday, 21 October, and urged him to remove the limits. US officials told the newspaper that the president was frustrated by the disruption. Trump has not publicly confirmed the conversation.

Asked on Thursday whether he had spoken to Musk, Trump declined to say. He nevertheless credited Musk with restoring access, telling reporters that 'he put it back'. Some Ukrainian units subsequently reported better connections, but others still encountered problems on Friday.

How Starshield Restrictions Disrupted Ukraine's Drones

The restrictions became apparent in mid-October, when Ukrainian forces found that satellite connections could fail on equipment travelling faster than approximately 160km/h (100mph). That figure referred to the speed of drones and other moving platforms, not internet download speeds.

Ukraine relies on satellite links for battlefield communications, logistics and unmanned operations. Officials said the limits interfered with long-range drone missions and the use of fast interceptors against Russian attacks. Loss of connectivity can interrupt a mission even when the aircraft itself is functioning.

Starshield is SpaceX's government-focused system, developed using Starlink technology. Although their functions overlap, Starshield is designed for military and national security applications, while commercial Starlink provides broader connectivity services.

Zelenskyy said on Friday that the speed restrictions had not been lifted. A day later, Khmara reported that the Defence Ministry's monitoring systems were recording stable connections above 400km/h. He described the improvement as a result of high-level dialogue, while saying monitoring would continue.

The higher figure is an important operational improvement. It does not, on its own, show that every unit has recovered full access or identify who changed the settings.

Who Ordered Ukraine's Starshield Restrictions?

Responsibility for the original restrictions remains contested. Reuters reported on 15 October, citing US and Western officials, that an order to limit Starshield had originated inside the White House. A senior US official denied that Trump personally requested the measure.

The Journal separately reported that Musk ordered the slowdown. Neither report conclusively establishes who authorised every part of the decision, and neither SpaceX nor the US government has publicly accepted responsibility.

Their accounts have also differed over who controls the system. On 14 October, Musk wrote on X that Starshield was controlled by the US government and that the US military and president determined limits on its use.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth instead pointed to SpaceX's authority over its services. Vice President JD Vance argued that Musk's involvement also depended on wider American policy towards Ukraine and Russia.

The dispute unfolded amid tensions over Ukrainian strikes against Russian energy infrastructure, which Trump had criticised. No publicly established evidence shows that disagreement caused the satellite restrictions.

The unanswered questions have reached Congress. On Thursday, 22 October, Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, the ranking member of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, opened an inquiry into the disruption and the Pentagon's reliance on SpaceX.

In letters to Musk and Hegseth, Blumenthal sought details of who approved the restrictions, whether Ukraine received advance notice and what safeguards govern the service. He requested written answers by 5 November and a SpaceX briefing by 12 November.

Ukraine's latest tests indicate that the immediate technical problem has eased. Blumenthal's inquiry, however, continues to examine how access to a critical battlefield system could be changed and who had the authority to make that decision.