U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday to avoid making public claims that the Trump administration throttled Starlink service to Ukraine without evidence.
Zelenskyy said in an NBC interview that he believed the U.S. government was responsible for recent restrictions on Starshield, the military version of Starlink that Ukraine uses for military operations. He also claimed Ukraine was "blocked" from U.S. intelligence for a period and that Starshield-linked vehicles and drones remain speed-restricted.
Bessent rejected those claims. "President Zelenskyy should be very careful about making statements like this that aren't true," Bessent said, adding that President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio "have categorically said that no one under the Trump administration did that."
The dispute hinges on a factual disagreement. Reuters reported last week that the White House ordered the technology restrictions. Trump denied responsibility, saying "it wasn't me, and I don't think it was Elon," referring to SpaceX owner Elon Musk. Musk, however, contradicted Trump in a post on X, writing that Starshield systems "are owned and controlled by the US government" and that "any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS."
Starlink is critical infrastructure for Ukraine's defense. The satellite internet service has enabled Ukrainian forces to coordinate military operations during the Russian invasion.
The exchange reflects broader tension between Trump and Zelenskyy. Trump has recently blamed Ukraine for rising global energy prices, specifically targeting Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries. "He wants to make problems for the world. He wants to make problems for our farmers, our ranchers, with diesel fuel," Trump said of Zelenskyy. Trump has also sought to import Russian diesel to lower U.S. fuel costs, a move that drew bipartisan congressional criticism. The president signed a sanctions package targeting Russia's energy sector into law but waived portions of it over the weekend.