No one's owning up to crippling Ukraine's military Starlink

Nearly 48 hours after Ukraine's Starshield terminals started mysteriously malfunctioning, nobody in Washington, nor at SpaceX, has taken responsibility for the apparent decision to hobble Ukrainian military communications.

Starshield terminals — the militarized version of SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet system — began losing connectivity as they approached a certain speed, causing havoc among Ukrainian drone units.  

The unexpected restriction disrupted active military operations, including the use of mid-range strike drones, as well as the interceptor drones Ukraine uses to help protect cities from Russia's ongoing aerial bombardment.

"The fact that nobody in Washington wants to own up to helping Russia kill Ukrainians shows how politically toxic this decision was," American journalist and commentator Michael Weiss told the Kyiv Independent.

The restrictions came as Ukraine continues to come under significant and sustained pressure from the Trump administration to cease attacks on Russian oil refineries, something Kyiv views as an essential part of its defense against Russia's invasion.

Ukraine has repeatedly offered to observe an "energy ceasefire" which would see both sides cease attacks on energy infrastructure such as power plants, oil refineries, and oil terminals, something Russia has repeatedly refused to accept.

Ukrainian activist Serhii Sternenko, a former adviser to ex-Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, was one of the first to raise the alarm about the restrictions on Oct. 14, saying that a "number of critical missions were disrupted."

"The restriction came without any warning," Junior Sergeant Dimko Zhluktenko of the 413th Unmanned Systems Regiment, told the Kyiv Independent. "In my estimate, that has already cost Ukraine tens of millions of dollars in losses."

As the scale of the problem became clearer over the course of the day, the question of who had actually ordered the restrictions grew louder, but there is still no definitive answer.

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk shifted responsibility to the Pentagon and the Trump administration for the slowdown, saying on Oct. 14 that "Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the US government."

"Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the U.S. military and ultimately POTUS," he said in a reply to Fedorov on social media.

Axios, citing "U.S. officials," reported the restrictions were the result of a "technical malfunction in the system," though no further evidence of this has emerged.

According to Axios, the White House denied any role in imposing the restrictions and said it planned to contact SpaceX to determine what had happened. The Pentagon has not publicly explained the restrictions.

The move has sparked bipartisan anger in Washington, as a historically unpopular President Trump approaches midterm elections that the Republican Party is predicted to badly lose.

"I’m not holding my breath for Defense Secretary Hegseth to offer transparency, so we’ll be asking the DOD Inspector General to initiate an investigation and report back to Congress and the American People," Republican Senator Thom Tillis said on social media.

"At best, this was an unacceptable error or lapse, and at worst a conscious decision to clear the field for a Russian attack," Tillis said.  

"Reports of Starlink failing in Ukraine are deeply alarming — potentially crippling air defense against Russia’s murderous missiles & drones. Trump & Musk must be held accountable," Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, who co-sponsored the Lindsey Graham Sanctions Act with the late senator from South Carolina, said on social media.

By the following day, Starshield was operating more reliably in Ukraine, but the new 160 km/h speed cap remained in place.

"We have now confirmed that Starshield works at 160 km/h, so those glitches have been fixed. But the cap itself is the problem. 160 km/h is not enough, and it limits how we can defend ourselves against the Russians," Zhluktenko told the Kyiv Independent.  

"As of now, Starshield's operation has resumed and continues, as we have confirmed through reports from units," a source in the defense ministry told the Kyiv Independent.

"The Ministry of Defense is also continuing communication to clarify all the reasons and circumstances of yesterday's restriction," they added.

Other Ukrainian military units were still apparently experiencing intermittent problems, another Ukrainian military source said, speaking to the Kyiv Independent on condition of anonymity.  “In some cases, it works perfectly, in some places it does not," they said.

Neither SpaceX nor the Pentagon responded to requests for comment from the Kyiv Independent.