U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday to avoid making public claims that the Trump administration throttled Starlink access, calling such statements "reckless" and untrue.
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 to conduct 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 responded directly. "President [Donald] Trump and Secretary [Marco] Rubio have categorically said that no one under the Trump administration did that, and I think it is very reckless for President Zelenskyy to make such a charge," Bessent said on "Meet the Press." He added that Zelenskyy "should be very careful about making statements like this that aren't true."
Trump denied responsibility last week, stating "it wasn't me, and I don't think it was Elon," referring to SpaceX owner Elon Musk. Trump said the Starshield systems remained "the same as it's always been."
However, Elon Musk contradicted the administration's position in a post on X last week. "Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the US government. Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS," Musk wrote. Reuters reported earlier that the White House ordered the technology restrictions.
The dispute over Starlink access occurs amid broader tension between Trump and Zelenskyy. Trump has recently expressed frustration over Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries, personally blaming Zelenskyy for rising U.S. energy prices ahead of midterm elections. The national average gas price reached nearly $4.30 per gallon on Sunday, with diesel at roughly $6.32 per gallon.
Trump has also moved to import Russian diesel and waived portions of a bipartisan sanctions bill targeting Russia's energy sector over the weekend, drawing criticism from Republican lawmakers including Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who called the action "unconscionable."