USA: The New York Times reported on Friday, citing sources familiar with the situation, that US billionaire and SpaceX co-founder Elon Musk stopped Ukraine from attacking Russia using his company's Starlink satellite communications system.
Since the conflict with Russia intensified in late February 2022, SpaceX has donated more than 20,000 Starlink satellite terminals to Ukraine. These terminals allow access to the internet in chaotic battleground areas that would otherwise be cut off. The NYT claims that Kiev, however, sought to militarise the communications infrastructure.
Ukrainian forces intended to launch a maritime drone and attack Russian ships berthed in Black Sea ports at some point in 2022 using the satellite system. Kiev asked Musk to allow its forces access to Starlink near Crimea in order to facilitate the attack, but Musk declined.
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The businessman declared on Twitter in the middle of February that his organisation would not "enable escalation of a conflict that may lead to WWIII." Additionally, he stated that SpaceX would not "permit the use of Starlink for long-range drone strikes." He also cautioned against the dangers of a world war, saying that most people appeared to be "oblivious" to them.
The NYT claims that depending on changes on the front lines, SpaceX also limited access to its Starlink systems. The media outlet claimed that the company restricted satellite communication access using location data collected by its service, adding that this practise allegedly "caused problems" during Kiev's counteroffensive attempts.
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Starlink was initially hailed as a game-changer for the Ukrainian military by both Ukraine and the US because it gave the military a dependable communications system that Russia allegedly couldn't hack into.
Musk then gradually lost the respect of Ukrainian authorities, earning Kiev's wrath on several occasions. He claimed that in the autumn of 2022, SpaceX would no longer be able to finance the costs of the Starlink operation in Ukraine on its own. He disclosed that the effort would cost $20 million a month and could not be maintained indefinitely in October 2022.
About 1,300 Starlink terminals in Ukraine reportedly stopped operating after Kiev failed to pay the $2,500 monthly fee for each one, according to the NYT. It obtained additional funding in December 2022 from a few of its European backers to pay for the system's expenses.
A peace plan that the SpaceX CEO proposed in October 2022 would have required Ukraine to make concessions to Russia also angered Kiev. Mikhail Podoliak, an aide to Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, then demanded that the billionaire either support Ukraine and stop looking for "ways to do harm," or else risk being associated with Russia.
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The Pentagon announced in June of this year that SpaceX had been given a contract for Starlink satellite communications services in Ukraine. The US Department of Defence refused to provide any information regarding the agreement, citing "operational security reasons" and the "critical nature of these systems."