SpaceX admits to preventing Ukrainian troops from using satellite technology
The SpaceX president revealed that the company took active steps to prevent Ukrainian forces from using critical Starlink satellite technology with Ukrainian drones, which are a key component of their fight once morest Russia.
“There are things we can do to limit their ability to do that,” Gwynne Shotwell told reporters on Wednesday, referring to reports of Starlink and the use of drones. “There are things we can do, and have done.”
Shotwell’s admission that SpaceX, founded by Elon Musk, has prevented Ukrainian soldiers from fully using the technology confirms a long-held belief that Musk and the company are uncomfortable with Ukraine’s military use of Starlink.
“It was never intended to be weaponized,” Shotwell told a space conference. “However, the Ukrainians have taken advantage of it in ways that were unintended and were not part of any agreement.”
Speaking to reporters followingwards, Shotwell argued that Starlink had sent units to Ukraine to “keep the banks running, the hospitals, keep families connected.”
“We know the military is using them for communications, and that’s okay,” Shotwell added. “But our intention was never for them to use it offensively.”
Last October it was reported that Starlink’s signal had been restricted and unavailable beyond the front line as Ukrainian troops tried to advance, essentially hampering their efforts to recapture territory from the Russians. Reports regarding the interruptions fueled accusations that Musk was bowing down to Russia.
“That has affected all the efforts of the Ukrainians to overcome that front,” a person familiar with the cuts told CNN in October. “Starlink is the main way for units on the battlefield to communicate.”
Ukrainian troops have roundly praised Starlink as a game-changing piece of satellite technology that has not only allowed them to maintain communications but also better target Russian forces with artillery and drones.
After Musk received Ukrainian — and global — praise for quickly delivering Starlink capabilities to Ukraine, CNN obtained exclusive documents showing SpaceX was trying to get the Pentagon to start paying for thousands of terminals, along with their expensive connectivity, for the services. Ukrainian military and intelligence Thousands of units had also been quietly purchased by third countries for Ukraine.
A senior defense official told CNN that SpaceX had “the nerve to look like heroes” while others paid so much.
Musk was quick to respond to the CNN report, tweeting “Fuck that…we will continue to fund the Ukrainian government for free.”
However, SpaceX and the Pentagon had continued to hold talks regarding a possible deal for military units, according to people familiar with the talks. On Wednesday, Shotwell indicated that at least some of those talks had ended.
“I was the one who asked the Pentagon to fund it, this was not Elon’s doing,” Shotwell revealed Wednesday. “We stopped engaging with the Pentagon regarding existing capacity. They’re not paying.”
SpaceX had never envisioned Starlink being used in the Ukraine in the way it has been, Shotwell said, echoing the coverage and accounts of the ingenuity of Ukrainian troops on the battlefield.”
“Honestly,” he said, “I don’t think we even thought regarding it. Could it be used that way? We didn’t think regarding it. I didn’t think regarding it. Our Starlink team may have done it, I don’t know. But we’ve learned pretty quickly.” .
