Elon Musk is wiping his hands of the Trump administration’s latest intel scandal.
The SpaceX founder did not deny that his company’s satellite-supplied internet service was suspended in Ukraine earlier this week as Russian missiles barraged Kyiv. Instead, he blamed the lapse on the U.S. military and Donald Trump.
In a statement on X, Musk wrote that “Starshield systems are owned and controlled” by Washington and that “any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS.”
“Starlink is a commercial service owned and controlled by SpaceX,” Musk continued. “Usage of Starlink is limited to civilian or defensive activities and cannot be used for offensive military action, as doing so would be inappropriate for a commercial company.”
But Ukraine’s actions on Tuesday were not offensive. Russian ballistic missiles slammed two plants supplying heat and electricity to Kyiv and damaged a residential building in the capitol. At least nine people died in the attacks, reported Al Jazeera.
Ukrainian officials suggested that the strikes could have been prevented if they received the proper intelligence—but there was only radio silence. Multiple sources familiar with the matter told CBS News that U.S. officials had claimed their defense systems had failed to detect the missiles because of “bad weather,” but Kyiv did not buy the excuse.
Around the same time, SpaceX restricted Starlink access within the region, upending Ukraine’s primary internet connection.
On Friday, Trump brokered an eyebrow-raising deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin to buy diesel from Moscow, effectively offering the country an economic lifeline that would allow Russia to continue the war.
Zelenskiy torched the deal, arguing to American officials that the arrangement exhibited “weakness.” Trump, apparently, did not appreciate the language choice.
A multi-day harassment campaign ensued in which the Trump administration called European capitals and Kyiv, threatening to cut off military intelligence sharing and weapons deliveries unless Ukraine stopped attacking Russian oil refineries.
On Wednesday, Zelenskiy told Piers Morgan that he felt “betrayed” by Trump and the U.S.
“This is our country, our body, our home, our children… That’s why it’s painful when Trump chooses one side,” the Ukrainian president said in a clip of the interview shared on X.
“If you’re in the middle, you have to stay in the middle. Not on the wrong side,” continued Zelenskiy. “This is not the right side of history.”