‘Are you playing politics?’ Polish foreign minister warns Musk over Starlink issues in Ukraine

Tensions flared this week over Starlink terminals in Ukraine.

Defense officials in Kyiv reported that gear suddenly began dropping connections during rapid motion. Ukrainian defense adviser Serhii “Flash” Beskrestnov revealed on Telegram that SpaceX introduced an unannounced speed cap, cutting off the military Starshield tier above 100 miles per hour, or roughly 160 kilometers per hour.

The fallout hit the battlefield within hours. According to The Kyiv Post, frontline troops with the 7th Rapid Reaction Corps told Reuters that connections dropped for 10 to 20 seconds at speeds near 70 miles per hour.

Although the aircraft stayed airborne, the signal gaps left pilots fighting for control, forcing teams to abort planned strikes.

Beskrestnov openly blamed politics. That claim remains unverified.

Behind the scenes, Ukrainian Defense Ministry insiders confirmed that the sudden blackout is hampering frontline logistics, with investigators still probing why the cap appeared without notice.

Words turn sharp

The disruption quickly ignited sharp political pushback across Europe.

Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski jumped onto X to confront the tech mogul publicly. “Hey, @elonmusk, big man, are you playing politics with your products again? As your European customers, we are watching you,” Sikorski wrote.

Warsaw has skin in the game. Poland shells out around $50 million each year to fund Starlink access for Ukrainian troops, and Sikorski previously warned he would find another vendor if SpaceX faltered.

Musk fired back during that earlier March clash with a blunt message: “Be quiet, small man.”

Even so, European leaders are increasingly uneasy about relying on a private billionaire in wartime. In September, Finnish President Alexander Stubb urged Musk to expand Starlink coverage over Russian missile sites to protect civilians. With hardware now throttled mid-flight, that trust is fraying fast.

Musk blames Trump

In a post on X, Elon Musk stated that the Starshield system, SpaceX’s military-grade Starlink system, is owned and controlled by the US government, explicitly stating that any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately the US President Donald Trump.

Ukraine’s former Minister of Defense, Mykhailo Fedorov, wrote on X Wednesday evening that the connectivity for Starlink is back up to 160 km/h, thanking Musk for his continued support.

This article is made and published by Jens Asbjørn Bogen, who may have used AI in the preparation