The SpaceX chief said steps were being taken to prevent the Ukrainian military from using SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service to control drones in the area during the war with Russia.SpaceX: Ukraine turned Starlink into a weapon
SpaceX’s chairman and chief operating officer, Gwynne Shotwell, said that they did not find it right to turn the Starlink satellite internet service, which provides broadband communication, into a weapon in the Ukraine-Russia war.
Ukraine effectively uses unmanned aerial vehicles to detect enemy positions, target and bomb long-range firearms, and control the drones with Starlink satellite internet provided by SpaceX. But now the Ukrainian army will not be able to do this. Referring to Starlink’s use with drones, Shotwell said, “There are things we can do to limit their ability to do this. What we can do and what we do…”
Shotwell: We gave it to them for humanitarian purposes
Shotwell stated that the use of Starlink with unmanned aerial vehicles exceeded the limits of SpaceX’s agreement with the Ukrainian government. According to Shotwell’s statement, after the invasion of Russia, it was allowed to be used for humanitarian purposes such as providing broadband internet to important points such as hospitals, banks, homes, but Ukraine used it for communication.
SpaceX has only sent trucks of Starlink terminals to Ukraine. The Ukrainian military communicated via SpaceX’s nearly 4,000 satellites launched into low Earth orbit.
Was it not anticipated that it could be used for offensive purposes?
Well, wasn’t it considered possible that Starlink could be used for offensive purposes in Ukraine? Shotwell said that neither he nor his team thought about it, but they learned very quickly. As you may recall, at the end of last year, Starlink experienced service interruptions in Ukraine, and SpaceX did not make any statement. Shotwell could not give a clear answer to the question of whether these cuts were related to efforts to prevent Starlink’s use as a weapon.
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