Sweetpea

1/2 Musk amplifies a message suggesting that providing Starlink to Ukraine was a mistake. Elon Musk, billionaire and CEO of SpaceX, has shared a post on his X account arguing that it was a mistake to provide Ukraine with thousands of Starlink terminals—along with millions of dollars’ worth of free connectivity per month—following the start of the full-scale Russian invasion. This development is part of a controversy that emerged on November 5, following an interview with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the German television program *ZDF Magazin Royale*. In that interview, Zelenskyy openly criticized the immense political influence wielded by Musk, stating: "There is too much power in the hands of one extremely wealthy person. Such a concentration of power is dangerous." That same day, Musk shared a post on X that challenged the Ukrainian president’s remarks. The message did not directly address the criticism regarding the concentration of wealth and power in the entrepreneur’s hands; instead, it shifted the focus to the technological assistance provided to Ukraine. The post argued that, in hindsight, it was a mistake for SpaceX to send thousands of free Starlink terminals to Ukraine and to provide millions of dollars’ worth of services every month at no cost. The reasoning offered was that what was initially intended as a system to provide internet access to the civilian population had effectively become the backbone for autonomous drone operations used to kill. The message added that whenever SpaceX refuses to support the military use of the system, it faces criticism from the press. Musk shared the content without adding any personal commentary. Ukraine makes extensive use of both commercial Starlink terminals and the militarized version of the system, known as Starshield. In mid-October, SpaceX introduced a speed limitation on the Starshield service in Ukraine without prior notice, causing serious disruptions to the operational capabilities of the Ukrainian armed forces—specifically regarding their efforts to intercept Russian jet-powered drones. Musk refused to take responsibility for the decision, publicly accusing Ukraine of violating the service's terms of use by employing commercial Starlink terminals to carry out offensive drone strikes. Kyiv rejected these allegations, clarifying that Starshield systems are used exclusively to support military operations against Russian forces within Ukrainian territory; commercial Starlink services do not function on Russian soil and, consequently, cannot be used to strike targets inside Russia. The Starshield service was subsequently restored to full speed. However, according to Zelensky, the prolonged performance restriction of this strategic military system also had consequences for the civilian population, resulting in casualties. Another aspect concerns the role of the U.S. Congress: the Pentagon’s watchdog rejected a bipartisan appeal from U.S. senators calling for an investigation into the disruptions to Starlink and Starshield. The article from *The Kyiv Independent* further expands its analysis to examine Musk’s political and economic influence in the United States. The entrepreneur—currently the world’s wealthiest person—has played a particularly active role in Donald Trump’s second administration, taking the helm of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).