Elon Musk ordered the slowdown of a military-grade version of Starlink relied on by Ukraine — a move that triggered panic in Kyiv and confusion inside the Trump administration, U.S. officials and people familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal.

Both Musk and U.S. President Donald Trump have voiced anger at Ukraine for striking Russian diesel refineries in recent weeks, which Trump blames for high energy prices. Last week, Musk capped the speeds at which Ukrainian hardware could stay connected to the satellite network, the people said, leaving some offensive and interceptor drones virtually useless.

Musk and Trump discussed the decision in a call soon after the slowdown became public while the president was campaigning, two people said; one claimed the pair had also discussed the matter before the throttle was imposed. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's public complaints — that Ukrainians could die if unrestricted service wasn't restored — sowed confusion over who ordered the slowdown and prompted an informal inquiry inside the White House. During the uproar, SpaceX representatives called White House counterparts seeking a unified message that the company and the administration had coordinated ahead of Musk's directive.

Hours after the slowdown surfaced, Musk posted on X: "Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS." Trump told reporters Monday he didn't know who was responsible for the slowdown, "but I would like to find out."

Some U.S. officials say Musk acted unilaterally and that Trump didn't specifically order retribution. But a person familiar said Musk spoke with multiple senior administration officials, including Trump, before imposing the cap, which Ukrainian officials said had allowed Russian missiles to evade their defenses. The slowdown began Oct. 14, after statements Kyiv saw as hostile — and U.S.-Ukraine tensions have spiked to their highest since Trump berated Zelensky in the Oval Office last year.

Ukraine's top diplomat in Washington, Denys Sienik, said Tuesday that Ukraine was still "waiting for the official response from contacts with the Pentagon and SpaceX at the leaders level to understand what has happened, but also to understand whether the connection has been restored or will be restored." SpaceX didn't respond to a request for comment