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The Wall Street Journal, citing sources, reported that President Donald Trump called Elon Musk and asked him to lift speed restrictions affecting Ukraine’s military Starlink service. U.S. and Ukrainian officials said the system worked “more normally” soon after, while a journalist reported frontline drone commanders believed the limits had been lifted and were still testing. The precise scope and duration of any change have not been independently established in the supplied reporting.
President Donald Trump called Elon Musk and asked him to lift speed restrictions on Ukraine’s military Starlink service, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the conversation. U.S. and Ukrainian officials said the system began working “more normally” shortly afterward, a development that could affect Ukrainian drones relying on satellite links to operate against Russian attacks.
The Journal’s sources said Trump was frustrated that the service still had a speed cap of about 160 kilometers per hour. The restriction reportedly caused some Ukrainian attack drones and interceptor drones to lose their Starlink connection when flying faster, limiting their effectiveness. The newspaper reported that Trump and Musk spoke after the Journal published an earlier report saying Musk had ordered restrictions on Starlink in Ukraine.
U.S. and Ukrainian officials told the Journal that the system began functioning more normally shortly after the conversation, following an earlier Starlink outage affecting Ukrainian troops. Separately, Oliver Carroll, a journalist for The Economist, reported that Ukrainian drone commanders on the front line said the restrictions had been lifted. Carroll cautioned that they were still conducting tests, while describing the change as something that “looks to be the case.”
The reports describe a sequence and accounts from sources, but do not provide a public transcript of the call or a detailed technical account of the service change. The Journal’s account of Trump’s request and the officials’ assessment should be distinguished from the frontline commanders’ early, still-tested view that restrictions were removed.
Why Drone Link Speeds Matter
Starlink connectivity can support communications between operators and drones, so a speed-based disconnection can affect missions that depend on maintaining a link while an aircraft is moving quickly. The reported limit matters because the affected equipment was described as including both attack drones and interceptor drones, which Ukraine uses in operations tied to the war with Russia.
The episode also highlights how Ukraine’s access to a privately operated satellite network can have military consequences. The report places a presidential request to a private company’s owner alongside a change that officials said followed soon afterward. It does not establish that Trump’s call alone caused the reported improvement, or specify what operational or contractual decisions produced it.
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Ukraine Reported Speed Limits
On October 14, Ukraine’s military reported encountering restrictions on Starlink satellite communications terminals used for military purposes, identified in the source report as Starshield. The military said drones lost their connection when they exceeded 160 kilometers per hour. That earlier report provides the operational background for the Journal’s account of Trump’s call.
The Journal’s reported sequence is that it first published an account saying Musk had ordered the restrictions, then Trump spoke with Musk and asked him to lift them. Meduza’s October 22 report relayed the Journal’s reporting and Carroll’s separate account of frontline commanders’ testing. The available material does not give a date or duration for the call, nor a technical description of precisely what changed.
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Scope of the Service Change
The supplied reports do not establish exactly what technical change was made, whether every affected terminal or unit received it, or whether the change is permanent. There is no public confirmation in the material from Musk or Starlink describing the decision, its rationale, or the terms under which military Starlink access is provided.
It also remains unclear whether the reported improvement resulted directly from Trump’s request or from another action taken around the same time. Frontline commanders were still testing the service when Carroll reported their assessment, so the extent of any restoration should be treated as developing rather than settled.
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Frontline Testing Will Clarify
The immediate next indicator is whether Ukrainian units’ tests confirm that drones can maintain Starlink connections above the previously reported 160-kilometer-per-hour threshold. Further reporting or statements from U.S. officials, Ukraine’s military, Musk, or Starlink could clarify which systems were affected and whether the reported change applies broadly.
Until those details are available, the confirmed public account is limited to the Journal’s reporting of Trump’s request and officials’ statement that the system worked more normally afterward. The commanders’ assessment that restrictions had been lifted remains an early report tied to ongoing tests.
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Key Questions
What did Trump ask Elon Musk to do?
According to The Wall Street Journal, Trump asked Musk to lift speed restrictions on Ukraine’s military Starlink service.
What was the reported speed limit?
The Journal’s sources described a cap of about 160 kilometers per hour. Ukraine’s military had reported that drones lost their Starlink connection when flying faster than that speed.
Were the restrictions lifted?
U.S. and Ukrainian officials said the system began working “more normally” after the call. Oliver Carroll reported that frontline commanders said restrictions had been lifted, but they were still testing. The reports do not establish the full scope or permanence of any change.
Why could the restriction affect Ukrainian drones?
The reported speed-based disconnection could interrupt satellite links used by some attack and interceptor drones, making those systems less effective, according to the Journal’s sources.
Has Musk or Starlink publicly explained the change?
The supplied reporting includes no public explanation from Musk or Starlink about the restriction, the request, or any service adjustment.
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