In a recent development, Elon Musk, the renowned CEO of X (formerly known as Twitter), has declined an urgent plea from the Ukrainian government to activate the Starlink satellite communications network during a significant military offensive. Musk expressed grave concerns that such an action could precipitate a major act of war and escalate the ongoing conflict.
Musk’s refusal to cooperate emerged in response to allegations from an X user who claimed that “Elon Musk covertly instructed his engineers to deactivate Starlink’s satellite communications network during a MAJOR Ukrainian offensive. This action was taken to intentionally thwart a surprise attack by Ukraine against the Russian naval fleet.”
In response, Musk refuted these claims through a post on X, stating, “The Starlink regions in question were not activated. SpaceX did not deactivate anything.”
He later elaborated on the situation, revealing, “There was an emergency request from government authorities to activate Starlink all the way to Sevastopol.”
“The obvious intent being to sink most of the Russian fleet at anchor.”
“If I had agreed to their request, then SpaceX would be explicitly complicit in a major act of war and conflict escalation,” he added.
Since the commencement of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Ukraine’s military has heavily relied on the satellite communications network, Starlink, which has facilitated front-line troops in maintaining crucial communication with their commanders.
Starlink is under the ownership of SpaceX, which, aided by private donations and funding from U.S. taxpayers, has supplied Ukraine with thousands of Starlink terminals since February 2022.
According to a report from Business Insider, a biographer who spoke with Musk indicated that the SpaceX CEO voiced apprehensions about the possibility of nuclear conflict following discussions with Russian government officials. The report also suggested that Musk personally intervened to prevent Ukraine from executing a drone strike on Moscow’s Black Sea Fleet.
Musk clarified his stance, asserting, “Starlink was not meant to be involved in wars. It was created so people can watch Netflix and engage in peaceful activities online, such as education, not for military actions like drone strikes.”
