LONDON, October 23. /TASS/. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk may have restricted Starlink satellite communications for the Ukrainian armed forces to punish Kiev for striking Russian oil refineries, UK’s The Economist reported, citing sources.
The magazine noted that the decision to restrict access to Starlink "appears to have come from a small circle around President [Donald Trump], Mr. [Elon] Musk and [special presidential envoy] Steve Witkoff." The article specified that in this way, "Musk wanted to punish Ukraine for striking Russian refineries."
Meanwhile, a source told The Economist that Musk had contacted the White House only after the restrictions had already been imposed.
Last week, the Kiev authorities said that SpaceX had imposed restrictions on the operation of Starlink terminals for the Ukrainian armed forces at speeds exceeding 160 kilometers per hour, disrupting several military operations. Musk stated that Starlink is not used for offensive military operations, but rather for defense and civilian purposes only. Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the US government, and any restrictions on speed or use are set by the US Army and, ultimately, by the president. The Wall Street Journal reported that it was the SpaceX CEO who ordered the restriction of Ukraine’s access to Starshield.
On the evening of October 22, US President Donald Trump announced that Ukraine’s access to the Starshield military satellite communications system had been restored.
Earlier on October 23, it was reported that Sergey Sternenko, a former adviser to Ukraine’s defense minister, wrote on his Telegram channel that some Ukrainian army operations had been disrupted again due to incomplete restrictions on satellite communication system use. He described the situation with Starlink and Starshield as "ambiguous."