Zelenskyy reveals differences with Trump over Starlink

Using Starlink over Russian territory

According to the president, in the first half of 2026, he received a request from Ukraine's Defense Ministry to explore ways to reach an agreement with Trump on using Starlink over Russian territory for military purposes.

"SpaceX, led by Elon Musk, had apparently already given the go-ahead for this - at least that's what I was told - and it supposedly only needed political approval. I received the relevant information, made an inquiry and met with the US president," Zelenskyy said.

According to Zelenskyy, during the meeting, based on information from Ukraine's Defense Ministry, he told the US president that Musk had confirmed Ukraine could use Starlink for this purpose.

"We agreed that the US side would hold discussions internally if SpaceX was ready," the president added.

At the same time, Zelenskyy said he met with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa and agreed on the necessary EU funding.

"Then I had a second meeting with the US president. He said that I had apparently misled him because Musk had refused to allow Ukraine to use Starlink over Russian territory. I went back to our Defense Ministry, and they said that might indeed have been the case," Zelenskyy said.

Could Musk change his decision?

Zelenskyy said that, according to the information available to him, Musk considers expanding Starlink's use to Russian territory potentially a major escalation and says he supports ending the war rather than prolonging it.

At the same time, the president believes the billionaire could change his position if presented with additional arguments, noting that Musk has previously made decisions regarding Starlink that helped save lives.

According to Zelenskyy, Ukrainian representatives and Trump's team have already been in contact with Musk, and the feedback has become more encouraging recently. He also said that French President Emmanuel Macron worked with Trump on the issue in Versailles, after which the US leader said: "Okay, I will support the idea of Starlink."

Finnish President Alexander Stubb also helped with the negotiations, Zelenskyy said. Overall, around 10 world leaders were involved in the issue. Zelenskyy also mentioned a parallel effort: Ukraine does not intend to wait for Russia and China to launch their own Starlink alternative and is prepared to deploy its own solution in response.

"We are not going to just wait for the Chinese and Russians to launch their Starlink alternative, which they are building and want to use in the war. When they launch it, we will also launch something of our own," Zelenskyy said.

RBC-Ukraine previously reported that Musk had refused to allow Ukraine to use Starlink for strikes against Russia, citing concerns about escalation. It was also reported that Trump declined to seek an expansion of Starlink's coverage for Ukraine even after Zelenskyy's personal request.