For the past week and a half, Ukrainians have been worried not only about the condition of relatives in the hot spots of the Ukrainian front but also about the health condition of Elon Musk, whose words and actions regarding support for Ukraine diverge.
At the beginning of the war, at the request of the Ministries of defence and digital transformation of Ukraine, SpaceX began transferring Starlink terminals to Ukraine. This is an invaluable contribution to the advancement of the Ukrainian army since it allows you to be in touch even in the conditions of a completely destroyed telecommunications infrastructure in Ukraine. Of the 20.000 terminals now in Ukraine, 85% were paid for by the US, UK and Poland governments, ordinary citizens of Poland, charitable organizations from Ukraine and international fundraising.
On September 30, gradual shutdowns of Starlink on the Ukrainian front began on the fronts of Ukraine, which caused concern among the army and military command of Ukraine. Starlink company did not warn about the shutdowns, and on October 3, on Twitter, he offered to give Russia several regions of Ukraine in exchange for peace. This statement caused a flurry of indignation both in Ukraine and other countries, to which Musk replied that his support for Ukraine was "$80 mln so far. Our support for Russia is $0." The media began to directly accuse Musk of being influenced by Putin, with whom he had recently personally communicated. Musk replied that he did not have a direct dialogue with the Russian terrorist. Nevertheless, according to CNN, Musk has not abandoned his "peaceful" and apparently pro-Putin views on Ukraine's geography.
"Musk also argued privately last month that Ukraine doesn't want peace negotiations right now and that if they went along with his plan, "Russia would accept those terms," according to a person who heard them," CNN.
Now, a letter has come to the Pentagon in which the head of SpaceX says he can no longer fund Starlink on the Ukrainian military front and asks the Pentagon to take on tens of millions of dollars of funding.
"We are not in a position to further donate terminals to Ukraine, or fund the existing terminals for an indefinite period of time," Elon Musk in a letter to the Pentagon.
"According to the SpaceX figures shared with the Pentagon, about 85% of the 20,000 terminals in Ukraine were paid – or partially paid – for by countries like the US and Poland or other entities. Those entities also paid for about 30% of the internet connectivity, which SpaceX says costs $4,500 each month per unit for the most advanced service. (Over the weekend, Musk tweeted there are around 25.000 terminals in Ukraine)," CNN.
Musk's near-ultimatum irritated the Pentagon. A senior US Department of defence official said that SpaceX has "the gall to look like heroes" and requires the US to pay for services when other countries and services do so much.
