WASHINGTON, Oct 16 – US President Donald Trump said on Friday that he did not think either he or Elon Musk was responsible for Ukraine losing Starlink access in a way that affected its military operations against Russia.
The reduction in services provided by the satellite company interrupted communications with headquarters and caused internet speeds to drop.
Reuters reported on Thursday that the White House approved the reduction in Starshield services.
Trump, speaking to reporters as he left the White House on a trip to Georgia, said neither he nor Musk was responsible for Ukraine losing Starlink access.
Any limit to Ukraine’s access to the Starshield system was not imposed by the United States, Trump added.Starshield was developed by SpaceX specifically for government and national-security customers, particularly the US Department of Defense. Starshield uses the Starlink constellation as its backbone.
Trump also he has a good relationship with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt, Steve Holland and Jasper Ward in Washington; Editing by Caitlin Webber)
