U.S. Media: Musk Refuses to Allow Ukraine to Use "Starlink" to Strike Targets Inside Russia
On the 7th, U.S. media disclosed that Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX, explicitly refused to allow the Ukrainian military to use SpaceX's satellite internet system, Starlink, to strike targets within Russia.
The Atlantic magazine reported, citing two "insiders" of former Ukrainian Defense Minister Reznikov, that Reznikov had been pushing to use Starlink to strike targets within Russia and had attempted to contact Musk through private channels, but was rejected by the latter. "As of now, (Musk) has not made a decision to agree."
The report stated that Musk's refusal to allow Ukraine to use Starlink for deep strikes against Russia is due to concerns about further escalation of the crisis.
After the Ukrainian crisis escalated in 2022, Musk provided tens of thousands of Starlink terminals to Ukraine for free. However, he later frequently clashed with the Ukrainian side, urging them to reach a peace agreement with Russia.
The Atlantic previously reported that during his visit to the U.S. at the end of July, Ukrainian President Zelensky asked U.S. President Trump to persuade Musk, hoping Musk would allow the Ukrainian military to use Starlink to strike Russian ballistic missile launchers. The report stated that Trump said he would consider Zelensky's request but did not make a clear promise. Additionally, Musk declined Zelensky's request for a meeting during this visit to the U.S.
Currently, SpaceX only allows the Ukrainian side to use Starlink within Ukraine, and when the Ukrainian military launches long-range drones for cross-border strikes, they can only rely on other navigation systems with lower accuracy. According to Janis Stierlman, one of the co-founders of the Ukrainian defense company "Rising Point," if cross-border strike drones were connected to the Starlink system, they could "more effectively eliminate the missile threat from Russia," similar to directly striking the "archer" rather than just "shooting down the arrows." (End) (Wang Hongbin)
Elon Musk denied Ukraine's request to use the Starlink satellite system for strikes against targets in Russia. This decision follows previous support where Musk provided Starlink terminals to Ukraine. The refusal is based on concerns about escalating the conflict. Ukrainian officials, including former Defense Minister Fedorov, have sought to leverage Starlink for military operations, but Musk has not agreed to this use.
- Musk denied Ukraine's request to use Starlink for strikes in Russia.
- Former Ukrainian Defense Minister Fedorov sought to use Starlink for military operations.
- Musk previously provided Starlink terminals to Ukraine during the crisis.
- Ukrainian President Zelensky requested U.S. intervention to persuade Musk.
- SpaceX currently restricts Starlink use to within Ukraine.