Democratic senators are asking Elon Musk to preserve documents concerning restrictions on Starlink services in Ukraine

Democrats in the U.S. Senate have asked Elon Musk, SpaceX’s chief executive, to preserve all documents concerning outages and restrictions affecting Starlink and Starshield services in Ukraine, according to The Wall Street Journal. The request comes amid new disruptions to the communications system used by the Ukrainian military.

Senators Jeanne Shaheen and Chris Coons are asking SpaceX to preserve records dating back to September 1, including communications about services in Ukraine and message exchanges between Musk, company representatives, the White House, and the Department of Defense. The documents in question relate in particular to outages between October 13 and 24 and those reported since November 12.

According to the lawmakers, limiting Starshield’s service to 161 kilometers per hour would have affected Ukraine’s ability to intercept Russian drones. They warned that the situation raises questions about SpaceX’s control over matters of national security and criticized the lack of transparency in the decision-making process.

SpaceX rejected President Volodymyr Zelensky’s claims that the restrictions had been reinstated, saying that “no change has taken place.” Musk had previously denied responsibility for the October decisions and said that Ukraine had violated Starlink’s terms of use, an accusation rejected by Kyiv.

SpaceX must confirm compliance with the request and respond to the senators by November 30. Congressional Democrats also intend to open an investigation in January 2027 into the White House’s handling of the war in Ukraine and Musk’s involvement.