WASHINGTON — Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent pushed back sharply on Sunday against Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, warning him to stop accusing the Trump administration of intentionally slowing down satellite communications vital to Ukraine’s defense.
Appearing on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Bessent dismissed Zelenskyy’s claims that American officials had ordered speed caps on Starshield, the military variant of the Starlink satellite network built by Elon Musk’s SpaceX. Bessent said President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have insisted that nobody in the administration issued such a directive, adding that the Ukrainian president “should be very careful about making statements like this that aren’t true.”
Dispute Over Crucial Battlefield Satellites
Starshield has served as a central pillar of Ukraine’s defenses against the Russian invasion, providing secure communications, guiding interceptors and directing frontline drones. Zelenskyy said in a recorded interview broadcast Sunday that access limits remain in effect, restricting connectivity on devices moving at speeds faster than 161 kilometers per hour.
Zelenskyy argued that SpaceX instituted the limits following a message from within the U.S. government, an assertion supported by a previous Reuters report citing administration orders. Musk also wrote on X that the U.S. government controls Starshield and that decisions regarding limits ultimately rest with the American military and the president.
Both Trump and Rubio have publicly rejected responsibility for the disruptions. Trump told reporters that he did not order any throttling and doubted Musk had done so either. Rubio maintained that no one instructed technicians to impair internet access for Ukrainian drones, though he said Ukraine’s request to use the network for deep strikes inside Russia remains under discussion.
“President Trump and Secretary 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.
Lawmakers Demand Formal Inquiries
The conflicting explanations have sparked anger among congressional lawmakers from both parties. On CBS’s “Face the Nation,” Republican Rep. Mike Turner of Ohio and Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota urged Congress to launch an official inquiry into what caused the network slowdown.
Turner emphasized that interruptions to frontline communication directly endanger lives as Ukrainian forces struggle to intercept incoming Russian aerial assaults. Cramer noted that even if the slowdown stemmed from a technical defect rather than a deliberate policy choice, lawmakers need clarity on the origin of the disruption.
Their calls follow a formal demand from a bipartisan coalition of nine senators, led by Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, who wrote to the Department of Defense inspector general to determine whether Pentagon actions or contractor missteps compromised critical operations.
Strained Relations and Energy Clashes
The friction over Starshield unfolds amid worsening diplomatic relations between Washington and Kyiv. Trump has repeatedly criticized Ukrainian drone strikes against Russian energy infrastructure, contending that the operations are driving up domestic fuel costs ahead of the upcoming midterm elections.
U.S. pump prices have climbed sharply due to broader conflict with Iran that disrupted shipping routes in the Strait of Hormuz, with national gasoline averages nearing $4.30 per gallon and diesel surpassing $6.30, according to AAA figures. To counter domestic price spikes, Trump recently used waiver authority to ease enforcement on Russian diesel imports, prompting severe criticism from lawmakers including Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina.
Bessent defended the diesel waiver Sunday, noting that European partners continue to import significant volumes of Russian goods. Meanwhile, Zelenskyy met over the weekend with American special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, later posting that future peace can only emerge through cooperation grounded in mutual trust.
