Trump denies limiting Ukraine access to Starlink network

US President Donald Trump denies limiting Ukraine's access to Starlink network

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US President Donald Trump has denied limiting Ukraine's access to Starlink's sister internet network Starshield. Trump made the denial after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said speed had yet to be restored on the network.

The network slowdown had hampered Kyiv's ability to protect itself from Russian attacks. Ukraine was hit by several deadly strikes on Tuesday after the network slowdown. Starlink is a civilian-use high-speed internet network operated by Musk's SpaceX.

Starshield, which relies on Starlink, is the military-grade sister service designed for the Pentagon. The US had previously warned it could withhold sharing intelligence, crucial for Kyiv's defences, if Ukraine did not stop hitting Russian oil refineries.

Tension has been brewing between Washington and Kyiv for days over a recent controversial diesel deal between Russia and the US. Zelensky - angered by the deal - resumed targeting Russian oil refineries this week in a move criticised by Trump three days after he announced a ceasefire on energy infrastructure.

Trump had also said that Zelensky was 'more difficult to deal with than [Russian President Vladimir] Putin'. But speaking to reporters as he left the White House on Friday, the US president said he had a good relationship with his Ukrainian counterpart.

Musk earlier explained that Starshield was managed by the US government, and that the Pentagon could have been responsible for the network slowdown. In its report about the alleged order regarding Starshield, Reuters quoted two US officials and a Western official briefed on the matter.