Elon Musk blames Donald Trump as internet throttled in Ukraine

Elon Musk has denied throttling internet services in Ukraine, blaming the US government for the slowdown.

Ukrainian authorities said they were caught off-guard by limited access to the military-grade version of Starlink, called Starshield.

Authorities in Ukraine pointed the finger at Musk, who owns the company.

But Musk denied responsibility.

“Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the US government,” Musk wrote on X.

“Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS (President of the United States).”

Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov thanked Musk as the internet was restored.

“Starlink connectivity at speeds of up to 160 km/h is being restored,” Fedorov said.

“Removing Starshield’s speed limit entirely is now critical for Ukraine’s defence.”

The slowdown came after Musk, the world’s richest man, backed US President Donald Trump’s criticism of Ukraine for attacking Russian energy sites.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the surprise slowdown during a visit to London for a meeting with UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham.

The Ukrainian leader, speaking with British broadcaster Piers Morgan on Wednesday (Thursday AEDT), said the move would cost lives.

“We understand what is going on – they switched off, it’s their decision,” said Zelenskky.

“People will die, of course, if attacks will continue and if Starlink will not work.”

The Starlink disruption comes after the Trump administration warned Ukraine last weekend that the American military could suspend intelligence sharing and European purchases of US weapons for Ukraine if Kyiv did not halt its long-range strikes on Russian energy facilities.

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Intelligence provided by the US and other partners helped Ukraine defend against Russian ballistic missile attacks by providing the locations of missile launchers as well as data on where the strikes are heading, and when.

Zelenskyy was asked by Morgan if he believed Ukraine was losing US support following the developments.

 “Yeah, but not because of us. We can’t be weak,” he replied.

“It’s painful when President Trump chooses one ‌side, not our ⁠side.”

Trump on Tuesday said the US was still sharing intelligence with Ukraine.

“We are helping them, and we are sharing intel. We want the war to end, so we’re working with them and with Russia on getting the war to end,” he said.

A Ukrainian military source with direct knowledge of day-to-day operations impacted by Starlink told CNN that “the complications are substantial.”

Last weekend, Musk supported Trump’s demand for Ukraine to ditch Zelenskyy in future elections.

“I agree, time for Ukraine to get a new leader,” Musk wrote in an X post on Sunday. “Zelensky has gone too far.”

Russian bot centres hit: Zelenskyy

Russian data centres have taken out wide networks of online bots, Zelenskyy has claimed, raising questions internationally about the extent of Moscow’s online interference campaigns.

Ukraine have hit multiple data centres belonging to major tech and AI firm Yandex in Russia in recent days.

“By the way, when we started responding to Russia’s operation against our data centres, and when our strikes reached Yandex’s data centres, it suddenly became a little easier to breathe on many social media platforms,” Zelenksyy told the Warsaw Security Forum.

“A lot of people noticed it. And there was less hate, less division, and fewer provocations. Because there were fewer bots.

“And it’s pretty clear where those bots were coming from – and if they disappeared when Yandex went offline.”

Yandex has confirmed three data centres, in the Sasovo, Kaluga, and Vladimir regions, had been attacked.

- Reported with CNN