In a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, a bipartisan group of House and Senate lawmakers - all of them staunch Ukraine allies - urged the administration not only to lift any speed restrictions related to the systems, but also to expand the Starshield contract to bolster Ukraine’s military capacity, even over Russian territory.
“Ukrainian forces depend on these services for command and control, intelligence sharing, battlefield communications, and the operation of unmanned systems,” the lawmakers wrote. “Any degradation in service, including reduced connection speeds, restricted geographic coverage, or interruptions in access, undermines Ukraine’s military effectiveness and provides Russian forces with an operational advantage that will extend the conflict and put more civilians in harm’s way.”
The letter was signed by three senators — Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) and Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) — and five members of the House: Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), Mike Quigley (D-Ill.), Jim Costa (D-Calif.) and Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif.).
The push is just the latest part of a broader outcry on Capitol Hill over reports that Starshield’s receivers quit working earlier this month for Ukrainian military equipment operating above a certain speed. Starshield is a specialized branch of the Starlink satellite systems run by SpaceX, which is owned by tech mogul Elon Musk.
Separately, three House Democrats representing Silicon Valley - Reps. Sam Liccardo, Jimmy Panetta and Ro Khanna - sent a letter to White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, demanding the administration launch an investigation into the Starlink slowdown.
The three press for a briefing within two weeks outlining who was behind the decision to curtail Starshield speeds and how that was carried out.
Musk has said any decisions to restrict Starshield were not his and must have come from President Trump and the Pentagon. A recent report by The Wall Street Journal, however, contradicted that account, saying Musk was behind the restrictions. The report infuriated many lawmakers in the Capitol, who say decisions affecting the military capability of Ukraine — or any U.S. ally — should not be left in the hands of any single company.
Read the full report at thehill.com.
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