US Vice President JD Vance said on Thursday, Oct. 22, that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk should not be at the center of the dispute over restrictions on Ukraine’s satellite service, framing the issue instead as a matter of US policy toward Russia’s war.
Vance spoke to reporters before departing for a rally in North Platte, Nebraska, a day after senior US envoy Steve Witkoff held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg.
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“Well, I think that fundamentally Elon Musk runs a private corporation, and I think it’s completely understandable that he doesn’t want to get in the middle of what is a war between two state actors without the US government effectively directing him on what to do,” Vance said.
“So I don’t think this is about Elon,” he continued, leaving unanswered who ordered the restrictions – a decision for which both Musk and the White House denied responsibility while pointing to the other.
Vance turns criticism on European leaders
Asked by a reporter whether he supported Republican calls for an investigation, Vance turned to European governments instead of answering directly.
He said it was ironic that countries with nothing comparable to SpaceX’s technology had spent years targeting the company with regulation and licensing restrictions, now relying on the company.
Currently, the EU is negotiating Ukraine’s access to its secure satellite communications program that could expand the system with commercial services in early 2027.
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“Now they’re all running to SpaceX saying, ‘Please do what we need you to do,’” he said, arguing that the situation proved a point US President Donald Trump has long made; that European countries rely on American technology, businesses and military power.
At the same time, Vance claimed that “European political leaders love to bash the US allies that they depend upon so much.”
The remark comes amid European criticism of Trump’s abrupt Oct. 9 diesel deal with Putin, which eased US sanctions on Russian fuel and effectively cleared the war for over 4.8 million tons of Russian diesel to reach the global market.
While Europe has sanctions imposed on Moscow since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, Trump has waived new sanctions on Russia which he signed into law just three weeks before striking a deal with the Kremlin leader.
On Monday, Oct. 19, a member of Trump’s Republican party, US Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, warned that anyone who tries to restrict Ukraine’s use of Starshield will face accountability, including a full investigation, public hearings and steep budget cuts.
Fitzpatrick also pledged to introduce bipartisan legislation, the “Roland Reagan Peace Through Strength Act,” blocking all purchases of Russian oil.
‘A tall mountain to climb’
One of the reporters pointed out that Ukraine has repeatedly agreed to negotiations, while Russia has not, and asked what gives Vance confidence that the current peace negotiations, led by Witkoff, will be different.
Vance claimed that both countries have agreed to join the negotiating table, adding that “the reason why we haven’t struck a peace deal is because they’ve [Kyiv and Moscow] just been too far apart on some of the details of that negotiation.”
According to him, Witkoff re-engaged the process.
“I mean, the nature of these things is you take a swing at it, you see how much progress it can make, and you’re back at it. And sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t,” he said, praising Witkoff and Trump’s administration for taking on difficult work, knowing that they “have a tall mountain to climb.”
So far, the Kremlin rebuked every proposition for a direct meeting with Ukraine, as well as proposals for a ceasefire.
In September, during the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, 51 countries issued a joint statement supporting Ukraine and urging Russia to accept an immediate ceasefire.
During the same summit, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who represented Putin, said that the Kremlin will not pause its “special military operation” even during negotiations. He also blamed Europe for “engaging in their shenanigans,” saying Ukraine would have kept its 1991 borders if they hadn’t.
At Witkoff’s request during their three-hour meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 21, Putin said he would be willing to resume trilateral talks with Ukraine and the US in November.
During the same visit, Witkoff praised Putin as a “humanitarian” for releasing an American prisoner held in Russia, drawing sharp criticism from both Republicans and Democrats.
Starlink dispute deepens rift between Kyiv and Washington
The Starlink (Starshield) controversy is just one of the latest strains in diplomatic relations between Ukraine and the US.
Tensions began when Trump announced the controversial diesel deal while the Ukrainian delegation was in Miami with US officials, hoping for a breakthrough in Russia’s war.
Kyiv later said it had been warned that Washington could restrict intelligence sharing if Ukraine kept striking Russian oil refineries. Around the same time, Trump also called for Ukraine to elect a new president, claiming Putin was easier to negotiate with.
Overnight on Oct. 13-14, Ukrainian military units lost connectivity on terminals moving at roughly 160 kilometers per hour (100 miles per hour) or faster, without prior warning. The disruption crippled several types of drones Ukraine uses, including interceptor drones used against Russia’s jet-powered Shaheds.
On Oct. 14, Musk claimed that limits on the military Starshield service were set by the US military, and ultimately the president himself, while Trump denied involvement.
“I don’t know if it was somebody, because it wasn’t me, and I don’t think it was Elon,” Trump said.
Since then, reports have pointed in both directions. While Reuters reported on Oct. 15 that the order originated inside the White House, The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, Oct. 20 that Musk ordered the restrictions himself.
On Oct. 21, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Musk determines Ukraine’s access to Starlink under a private commercial contract.
The episode has even drawn criticism from within Trump’s own party. Besides Fitzpatrick, Republican Senator Thom Tillis and Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen led nine senators in asking the Pentagon’s inspector general on Oct. 15 to investigate the disruptions.
Following a meeting with Witkoff in Oslo, Norway, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Oct. 20 that US intelligence sharing with Ukraine for early warnings of Russian attack is working again, adding that Ukraine could see results within the next 48 hours on Patriot interceptors and Starlink restrictions.