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An artilleryman from the Special Rifle Police Battalion of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region sets up a Starlink satellite internet system at a position near the front line in the Donetsk region on Oct. 16 (local time), amid Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine. / Reuters, Yonhap

U.S. President Donald Trump asked SpaceX CEO Elon Musk to lift restrictions on military-grade Starlink services across Ukraine during a phone call on Oct. 21 (local time), according to U.S. government officials.

Starlink network speeds in Ukraine were confirmed to have partially improved the day after the call.

The Starlink network was operating at close to its previous performance levels as of Oct. 22, before the speed restrictions were imposed, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing U.S. and Ukrainian officials. However, some Ukrainian officials said service had not been fully restored and that improvements in speed varied among military units.

The move came after restrictions limiting the operating speed of Starlink terminals to approximately 160 kilometers per hour disrupted the Ukrainian military's use of high-speed drones and interceptors.

Trump reportedly expressed concerns about the restrictions during his call with Musk. Although he declined to comment specifically on whether he had spoken with Musk, Trump said, "The point is that he put it back the way it was."

Neither Musk nor SpaceX has issued an official statement.

Accounts within the U.S. administration have differed over the reasons behind the Starlink slowdown. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio indicated that SpaceX had made the decision independently under its terms of service. Vice President JD Vance, meanwhile, suggested that the issue was connected to U.S. policy toward Ukraine, saying, "I can understand a company not wanting to get dragged into a war without clear policy guidance from the U.S. government."

The White House has denied allegations that Trump ordered the slowdown or knew about it in advance.

Meanwhile, in Congress, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) announced that he would formally launch an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the restrictions on military communications networks without prior notice, as well as the Pentagon's reliance on private satellite communications systems.

                                                                                                           Lee Jeong-eun