Trump Says He Will Speak to Elon Musk About Restoring Internet Access in Iran
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday that he plans to speak with billionaire Elon Musk about restoring internet access in Iran, where authorities have enforced a nationwide communications blackout for four days amid escalating anti government protests.
Speaking to reporters, Trump said Musk’s expertise could be critical to restoring connectivity. “He’s very good at that kind of thing. He’s got a very good company,” Trump said, when asked whether he would engage with Musk’s aerospace firm SpaceX, which operates the satellite internet service Starlink.
Neither Musk nor SpaceX immediately responded to requests for comment.
Iran has been largely cut off from the global internet since Thursday, severely limiting the flow of information as protests spread across the country. The demonstrations are the most expansive challenge to Iran’s clerical leadership since 2022, with activists and rights groups reporting widespread arrests and deadly clashes with security forces.
Trump’s remarks come against the backdrop of a complex and shifting relationship between the president and Musk. The billionaire helped fund Trump’s successful presidential campaign and later supported efforts to dramatically reduce the size of the federal government. The two later fell out publicly after Musk opposed Trump’s signature tax legislation, but signs of a rapprochement have emerged in recent weeks.
Musk and Trump were seen dining together this month at Trump’s Mar a Lago resort in Florida. In addition, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is scheduled to visit a SpaceX facility in Texas on Monday, underscoring the administration’s renewed engagement with the company.
Musk has previously backed efforts to provide Starlink access to Iranians seeking to bypass government restrictions. During the 2022 protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini while in police custody, the Biden administration worked with Musk to enable Starlink connectivity in Iran.
Starlink has also been deployed in other conflict and unrest zones, most notably Ukraine. In 2022, Musk ordered a temporary shutdown of the service during a critical Ukrainian military operation, highlighting both the strategic value and political sensitivity of the technology.
Iran’s current wave of unrest began on December 28, initially driven by soaring prices and economic hardship, before evolving into broader opposition to the clerical establishment that has ruled since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Human rights groups say the toll has been severe. The U.S. based organisation HRANA has reported at least 490 protesters and 48 security personnel killed, with more than 10,600 arrests in just over two weeks of unrest. Iranian authorities have not released official casualty figures, and the numbers could not be independently verified.
As the blackout continues, Trump’s comments signal a potential new diplomatic and technological front in efforts to restore communications for millions of Iranians cut off from the outside world.
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