Looking to deflect the controversial move — which was swiftly admonished by powerful congressional Republicans and Democrats — Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday said Ukraine’s access to Starlink was up to Musk and not the White House.
“The bottom line is that that is governed by a private commercial contract as to how their stuff can be used and what speeds they’ll allow it to be used at,” Rubio told reporters while traveling to India.
And Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, speaking to reporters on Tuesday, suggested Starlink’s slowdown was a commercial matter and not a result of any orders from the White House.
“There are terms of service that ultimately need to be complied to, and that’s where Starlink has the option to make those decisions,” Hegseth said.
Taken together, the comments are a change of tune from President Trump’s original assertions last week that neither he nor Musk was responsible for the disruption. Rubio also on Saturday had insisted that no one ordered the slowdown.
The about-face comes after The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that Musk ordered the slowdown of the satellite services, a vital tool Ukraine uses to defend itself from Russian missile and drone attacks.
The Journal later reported Thursday President Trump called Musk on Wednesday and asked him to life the restrictions.
When asked Thursday about the report, Trump told reporters, "It was a very interesting situation so I don't want to comment one way or another... whether I called or whether somebody else called, doesn't make any difference. I guess, the bottom line is he put it back."
The Hill's Ellen Mitchell and Laura Kelly have the full report.
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