Ukrainians reacted Thursday with confusion and some anger to comments by a top Starlink official that their country had “provided” satellite internet service, which is vital to national security.
President Gwynne Shotwell of SpaceX, which runs Starlink, also reportedly said in the same place Wednesday that the company controlled by Elon Musk has taken unspecified measures to prevent the Ukrainian military from using Starlink technology against Russian invaders.
A network of low-orbit satellites has been essential for the use of Ukrainian battlefield drones – the central equipment of the year-old war – and the defense of the country is not a viable alternative. Satellite links help Ukrainian fighters locate the enemy and target long-range artillery strikes.
On stage at a conference in Washington, DC, Shotwell said: “We are very happy to provide connectivity to Ukraine and help them in their struggle for freedom. It was never intended to be a weapon. However, the Ukrainians have used it in an unintentional way and it was not part of the agreement .
Speaking separately to reporters from The Wall Street Journal and other news organizations, Shotwell said SpaceX has been working to limit Ukraine’s use of Starlink for military purposes.
“There are things we can do to limit his abilities,” he said without elaborating. “There are things that can be done, and have been done.”
That attracted the top aide to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. In a tweet, Mykhailo Podolyak says SpaceX needs to decide whether to side with Ukraine’s right to freedom or Russia’s “right” to kill & seize territory.
It’s unclear whether Shotwell’s comments on Wednesday were made at the urging of Musk, SpaceX’s founder, CEO and chief engineer. An email to SpaceX seeking comment was not immediately returned.
There is no indication of any disruption to Starlink services in Ukraine.
In a statement, the country’s Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov reported “there are no problems with the operation of Starlink uplink terminals in Ukraine.” A ministry official familiar with the situation said inspections Thursday of cities near the front lines of the war found no indication of problems with Starlink coverage. The official spoke on condition of anonymity.
The 2,200-satellite constellation has been a lifeline for the country since Russia’s February 24 invasion, especially important as Ukraine struggles to maintain electricity and telecommunications power in the face of withering Russian missile and drone attacks on civilian targets.
In his statement, Fedorov announced the arrival of 10,000 new terminals provided by the German government, adding: “Starlinks help save thousands of lives every day. The energy infrastructure continues to work thanks to Starlinks. Doctors perform complex operations thanks to the connection provided by Starlinks.
The Thursday statement called Musk “one of the largest private donors to future victories,” estimating SpaceX’s contribution to more than $100 million. “I hope Starlinks work is more stable in Ukraine.”
Ukrainian military officials called Shotwell’s statement “strange” given the fact that the country uses Starlink as a combat tool.
Musk caused a stir in October when he called on the Pentagon to take over funding of Ukraine’s Starlink effort.
The billionaire and owner of Twitter later resigned. Earlier in the month, he raised Zelenskyy’s hack by arguing on Twitter that in order to achieve peace, Russia should be allowed to keep the Crimean Peninsula, which it seized in 2014. He also said that Ukraine should adopt neutral status, dropping its bid to join NATO.
At the same time, the Starlink terminal stopped working in the newly liberated area on the Ukrainian-Russian front line in the Kherson region. Ukrainian officials later said that due to the pace of the recapture they had pushed forces into Starlink areas that had been “geo-fenced” to prevent Russia from using the service.
In an interview in late December, Fedorov told The Associated Press that 24,000 Starlink terminals were operating in the country, most of which were provided by donors.
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