In early 2022, not long after Russia’s invasion began, SpaceX made good on CEO Elon Musk’s promise by shipping thousands of Starlink broadband internet terminals to the front lines of Ukraine.
The terminals quickly turned into a vital lifeline as many parts of the embattled region were plunged into the dark and cut off from the rest of the world.
But Musk has been accused of playing both sides, with biographer Walter Isaacson claiming the billionaire had secretly ordered SpaceX engineers not to turn on the Starlink satellite network near the Crimean coast in 2022 to disrupt what Musk called a “mini-Pearl Harbor.”
And as the war rages on some four years later, SpaceX’s terminals are once again making headlines. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky accused the space company of restricting access to its Starshield service, a military version of the service specifically developed for the Pentagon.
Yet neither Musk nor the White House are willing to take any blame for the disruption, with both sides pointing fingers at each other. In fact, Musk has now thrown president Donald Trump under the bus as the scandal deepens.
“Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the US government,” he tweeted on Wednesday. “Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS.”
“Starlink is a commercial service owned and controlled by SpaceX,” he added. “Usage of Starlink is limited to civilian or defensive activities and cannot be used for offensive military action, as doing so would be inappropriate for a commercial company.”
It’s a bizarre missive, especially considering what Ukraine’s actions could easily be characterized as “defensive activities,” as many users of Musk’s social media network pointed out. Besides, there’s no question Musk has an enormous amount of sway in Washington, DC, meaning he easily could’ve had a say in the matter.
The timing was also suspicious, to say the least. As The Hill reports, Zelensky made his announcement just days after Trump announced a deal with Russian president Vladimir Putin to buy millions of tons of diesel to lower prices in the US ahead of the rapidly approaching midterm elections.
Lawmakers were appalled at the US seemingly dropping the ball on coming to Ukraine’s aid.
“Reports of Starlink failing in Ukraine are deeply alarming— potentially crippling air defense against Russia’s murderous missiles & drones,” tweeted senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) on Wednesday, hours before Musk chimed in on the subject. “Trump & Musk must be held accountable.”
Meanwhile, a subdued Zelensky mourned the loss of US support.
“Really, yes… but it’s a little bit more complicated than just my emotions or my feelings,” he said when asked if he feel betrayed by Trump on Wednesday. “It’s a pity that we are losing, we are losing a strong partner.”
By Thursday, the situation changed once more, with Ukraine’s strikes on Russian refineries resuming as Starlink and Starshield services had been restored to full capacity, as an unnamed Ukrainian official told Axios.
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