Reuters: Order to Curb Starshield Service in Ukraine Came From the White House
Reuters, citing its sources, reports that the instruction to restrict the Starshield satellite system for Ukrainian military use came from the White House. A senior US official said President Donald Trump had not requested it.
An order to restrict Starshield, the military version of the Starlink satellite internet system, in Ukraine was received from the White House, the news agency Reuters reports, citing two sources in the United States and one in an unnamed Western country. Starlink is a satellite internet service run by SpaceX, and Starshield is its military variant, which Ukraine's armed forces have also been using. The report matters because communications access affects the Ukrainian military's operations at a time of rising tension between Washington and Kyiv.
What the sources say
Reuters' sources say the leadership of the US Department of Defense was told that Starshield's operation for Ukraine's military needs must be limited. The sources did not specify who at the White House made the decision.
A senior US official told Reuters that President Donald Trump had not asked for anything of the kind. The White House did not officially comment on who may have issued the instruction.
Background
Ukraine's armed forces experienced problems with Starshield for several days this week. That came as tension in US–Ukraine relations has increased.
SpaceX chief Elon Musk stated that only the Pentagon, the US Department of Defense, can restrict the operation of the military version, Starshield.
