ELON Musk allegedly ordered a shutdown of Starlink coverage in parts of Ukraine during a crucial counteroffensive at the beginning of the Russian invasion, it has been reported.
The billionaire's command allegedly led to a communications blackout while Ukrainian forces attempted to retake the port city of Kherson in the south of the country in September 2022.
The communication blackout, where staff at the American tech firm deactivated at least 100 Starlink terminals after being instructed to, reportedly caused the attack to fail, according to Reuters, which spoke with three people who were familiar with the demand.
According to reports, the blackout caused Ukrainian soldiers to panic as drones surveilling Russian forces went dark, and long-range artillery units, reliant on Starlink to aim at their targets, struggled to hit them.
Although Ukrainian forces were able to reclaim Kherson, the incident was reported to have damaged the country's trust in the technology, along with shocking Starlink employees.
One of the three people who were familiar with the instruction claimed it enabled Musk to take “the outcome of a war into his own hands”.
The Tesla-owner reportedly grew concerned that Ukrainian forces' advancements could provoke nuclear retaliation from Vladimir Putin.
A spokesperson for SpaceX, the aerospace company that owns Starlink, told Reuters the reporting of the incident is “inaccurate”.
In March, Musk posted on his social media platform, X/Twitter: “To be extremely clear, no matter how much I disagree with the Ukraine policy, Starlink will never turn off its terminals.”
Starlink, which went live in 2019, is a satellite company that beams data across its network and is the world’s largest satellite operator.
It provides customers with internet access in remote and unreliable locations and has a network of around 8000 satellites in orbit.
It has been a key tool in Ukraine’s defence, as Musk has provided the country with more than 50,000 Starlink terminals during the war.
The network has allowed Ukrainians to speak to relatives across the world, and President Zelensky uses the network to transmit broadcasts to the nation.
It is also used by Ukrainian forces on the battlefield to communicate and is used to guide drones and long-range artillery units.
