U.S. President Donald Trump told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that he had apparently been misled over Elon Musk's willingness to allow Ukraine to use Starlink satellite services over Russian territory for military purposes, Zelenskyy said.


Speaking to journalists, Zelenskyy said Ukraine had sought an agreement with Trump and Musk to expand Starlink coverage over Russian territory to support Ukraine's defence operations. Musk ultimately refused to authorise the use, while discussions with the U.S. remain ongoing, Caliber.Az reports via Ukrainian media.


Zelenskyy said Ukraine's Defence Ministry asked him in the first half of 2026 to explore an agreement with Trump on the use of Starlink over Russian territory. At the time, Ukrainian officials had told him that SpaceX, led by Musk, had apparently agreed to the proposal and that only political approval was needed.


"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, he subsequently told Trump that, based on information from Ukraine's Defence Ministry, Musk had confirmed Ukraine could use Starlink for the purpose.


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


Zelenskyy said he later discussed the issue with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa, with the sides agreeing on the necessary EU funding.


During a second meeting with Trump, however, the U.S. president told Zelenskyy that Musk had refused to allow Ukraine to use Starlink over Russian territory.


"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 Defence Ministry, and they said that might indeed have been the case," Zelenskyy said.


By Sabina Mammadli