NYT: Elon Musk prevented the Armed Forces of Ukraine from attacking Russian ships in Crimea with drones

Billionaire Elon Musk refused the Ukrainian military to activate Starlink systems near the occupied Crimea, which affected the strategy of the war.

Musk has restricted access to Starlink several times during the war, according to The New York Times.

Last year, the founder of SpaceX rejected Ukraine’s request to provide access to Starlink near Crimea so that the Armed Forces could send a kamikaze maritime drone to Russian ships in Crimea, people familiar with the negotiations told the newspaper.

Musk later stated that Starlink could not be used for long-range drone strikes.

Deputy Prime Minister for Innovation Mykhailo Fedorov believes that it is unfair to blame Musk, because in November, during the Russian attacks on the Ukrainian energy infrastructure, the businessman helped speed up the delivery of about 10,000 Starlink terminals.

Then, according to Fedorov, “SpaceX and Elon Musk showed by their actions whose side they were on.”

Currently, more than 42 thousand Starlink terminals are used in Ukraine by the military, hospitals, enterprises and humanitarian organizations.