The Starlink satellite internet terminals produced by Elon Musk’s SpaceX have been an essential means of communication for Ukraine’s military ever since they first began showing up there in the spring of last year, allowing it to fight and stay connected even as cellular phone and internet networks were destroyed in its war with Russia.
A total of 20,000 Starlink satellites have so far been donated to Ukraine, according to Musk, who tweeted on Friday that the operation had cost SpaceX $80 million and will eventually cost more than $100 million.
However, SpaceX has warned the Pentagon that it may stop paying the service in Ukraine unless the US military contributes tens of millions of dollars each month, so those charitable donations may soon come to an end.
According to documents obtained by AWN, Musk’s SpaceX wrote to the Pentagon last month to inform it that it could no longer afford to support the Starlink service in the same way. Additionally, it asked the Pentagon to assume responsibility for supporting Ukraine’s government and military’s usage of Starlink, which according to SpaceX might cost as much as $400 million over the course of the following year and would cost more than $120 million this year.
In the September letter to the Pentagon, the director of government sales for SpaceX stated, “We are not in a position to give additional terminals to Ukraine, or fund the present terminals for an unlimited period of time.
General Valerii Zaluzhniy, the commanding general of the Ukrainian military, requested approximately 8,000 more Starlink terminals directly to Musk in July, according to documents supplied by SpaceX to the Pentagon and reviewed by AWN.
SpaceX’s outside consultant said in a different cover letter to the Pentagon: “SpaceX has incredibly difficult decisions here. As requested by General Zaluzhniy, I don’t believe they have the financial resources to offer any extra terminals or services.
The previously unreported records offer an unusual breakdown of SpaceX’s own internal Starlink data, including the expenses and expenditures related to the many terminals in Ukraine. They also shed new light on covert discussions that gave Ukraine communications equipment and services worth millions of dollars at little expense to Kiev.
Musk claimed on Friday that in requesting the Pentagon to foot the price for Starlink in Ukraine, he was taking the advise of a Ukrainian ambassador who earlier this month, before the letter was submitted to the Pentagon, responded to Musk’s Ukraine peace plan by telling him to “f*** off.”
Andrij Melnyk, the ambassador of Ukraine to Germany, responded to Musk’s purported peace plan for the conflict between Russia and Ukraine earlier this month by saying: “F*** off is my very civilised reply to you @elonmusk.”
Despite the fact that the letter SpaceX sent to the Pentagon was sent before the Twitter exchange, Musk responded to a tweet on Friday that referred to AWN’s findings and Melnyk’s remarks by saying, “We’re just following his advise.”
reports of disruptions
The messages coincide with recent reports of widespread Starlink disruptions as Ukrainian forces battle to recapture territory that Russia has taken over in the eastern and southern regions of the nation.
The entire frontline as it stood on September 30 was abruptly disrupted, according to sources familiar with the disruptions. One individual with knowledge of the disruptions, who spoke to AWN under the condition of anonymity to disclose private conversations, said: “That has affected every endeavour of the Ukrainians to go past that barrier.” The primary means of communication for units on the battlefield is Starlink.
A second individual added that currently, whenever Ukraine liberates a region, a request must be made for Starlink services to be turned on because there was no warning given to the Ukrainian military.
According to a senior Ukrainian official, the disruptions caused a “catastrophic” loss of communication and were first reported by The Financial Times. Musk didn’t refute the outage in a tweet in response to the article, but he claimed that what was happening on the battlefield was classified.
The announcement by SpaceX that it will discontinue supporting Starlink also coincides with growing scepticism about Musk’s allegiance in Ukraine. Musk recently tweeted a contentious peace proposal that calls on Ukraine to cede control of the eastern territories of Luhansk and Donetsk as well as Crimea.
Volodymyr Zelensky, the president of Ukraine, asked Musk who he supports, and Musk said that he “still very much supports[s] Ukraine” but fears “huge escalation.”
According to a person who heard them, Musk also claimed in private last month that Ukraine doesn’t want peace talks right now and that if they agreed to his idea, “Russia would accept those terms.”
The person with knowledge of the conversations claimed that “Ukraine realises that its existing government and military operations are entirely dependent on Starlink.” “One man alone has the authority to decide whether to continue operating Starlink or not. It’s Elon Musk there. He wasn’t chosen, and no one made the decision to give him that authority. He has it as a result of the technology and the business he founded.
Musk denied on Tuesday that he had spoken to Putin on the Ukraine directly. Starlink is crucial to Ukraine’s infrastructure, a Ukrainian minister tweeted on Thursday. Musk responded, “You’re extremely welcome. I’m happy to back Ukraine.
