The Pentagon Inspector General declined to investigate Starlink/Starshield slowdowns in Ukraine, amid conflicting accounts between the Trump administration and SpaceX, while Putin praised Musk as a 'genius' as Russia launched its own Starlink-alternative satellite constellation.
<p>The Pentagon inspector general's office declined a request from US senators to investigate restrictions recently imposed on the Ukraine military's use of SpaceX's satellite network.</p>
<p>Ukraine, which uses SpaceX's Starlink service and the military version known as Starshield, <a href="https://x.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/2112167307417911524">said earlier this month</a> that military drones lost satellite connectivity when traveling above 161 kilometers per hour (100 miles per hour). The limit was removed after about 10 days.</p>
<p>Five Democratic and four Republican senators sent an <a href="https://www.foreign.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Letter%20to%20DODIG%20re%20Starlink%20over%20Ukraine%20-%20Final%20Signed.pdf">October 15 letter</a> to Department of Defense Inspector General Platte Moring, asking for a probe into the reported disruptions of Starlink and Starshield. The letter asked, among other things, "whether any restrictions on Starlink or Starshield services were directed, authorized, or implemented by SpaceX, the Department of Defense, or other US government entities; whether such restrictions were consistent with applicable US government contracts, and what actions, if any, the Department of Defense took in response."</p><p><a href="https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/10/pentagon-ig-refuses-to-investigate-starlink-starshield-slowdown-in-ukraine/">Read full article</a></p>
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# Pentagon IG refuses to investigate Starlink/Starshield slowdown in Ukraine
Source: [https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/10/pentagon-ig-refuses-to-investigate-starlink-starshield-slowdown-in-ukraine/](https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/10/pentagon-ig-refuses-to-investigate-starlink-starshield-slowdown-in-ukraine/)
Musk has said that all limits on Starshield speed and usage “are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS\.” Trump denied ordering the restrictions, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the administration had “no foreknowledge” of the slowdown\.
Shaheen yesterday said, “It is concerning that the inspector general has apparently decided not to investigate satellite communication disruptions that Ukraine relies on to protect its civilians,” according to CNN\.
Shaheen said the Trump administration and SpaceX gave “conflicting accounts of what led to those disruptions, which weakened Ukraine’s defenses and put American personnel in Ukraine at risk unnecessarily\. There must be an independent accounting and review to determine responsibility and prevent this from happening in the future\. I urge the inspector general to conduct a full investigation\.”
## Putin praises Musk as Russia plans Starlink alternative
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday reportedly called Elon Musk a “genius” while discussing Russia’s plan to build a satellite constellation\. Putin made the comment at the Russia\-Africa Summit in Moscow\.
“The admission was all the more striking because a version of Starlink, developed by Musk’s SpaceX, has been used by Ukraine’s military throughout the war with Russia as a key component of drone operations and battlefield communications,”[Reuters wrote in an article](https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/putin-salutes-musks-genius-russia-plays-catch-up-with-starlink-2026-10-28/)describing Putin’s comments\.
Putin reportedly made his comments during a presentation by a Russian government minister who was describing Russia’s initial launches of 30 satellites\. “Just a second, I want to point out this is just our first step\. Elon Musk is a genius, he’s just a real genius,” Putin said, according to Reuters\.
Putin noted that Starlink already operates thousands of satellites, “while we are only taking our first steps,” and said he has been in “close contact” with Musk\.
“We are in close contact with our American partners—including Mr\. Musk—because it is very important, in orbit, not to get in each other’s way and to maintain a certain level of discipline and order,” Putin was quoted as saying\.
Ukrainian officials accuse SpaceX's Starlink of imposing undisclosed service restrictions, including a speed limit barring connections to devices moving over 100mph, disrupting military drone operations amid worsening US-Ukraine tensions.
Elon Musk claims Ukraine's military violated Starlink's terms of service by using it for offensive drone strikes, prompting service restrictions, while Ukrainian officials deny the accusation and say civilian Starlink was technically incapable of supporting such missions. Starlink and Starshield services have since been fully restored.
Elon Musk accused Ukraine of violating Starlink's terms of service by using the satellite service for lethal drone strikes, after SpaceX restricted the technology's use on high-speed drones. Ukraine officials denied the accusation and accused Musk of throttling their access to Starshield.
SpaceX has reportedly introduced speed restrictions on StarShield terminals used in Ukraine, disrupting drone command links and highlighting Kyiv's dependence on private satellite infrastructure for battlefield communications.