Billionaire Elon Musk has drawn criticism for his handling of his Starlink internet satellites in an area that is important to the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.
While many have been quick to blame Musk and point the finger asking why he didn’t help Ukraine, the SpaceX CEO shared his side of the story and reasoning during a recent interview.
What Happened: Since the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, Musk has helped Ukraine by providing the country with Starlink internet satellites.
The biography of Musk written by Walter Isaacson, which was released on Tuesday, highlighted Musk being asked to disable a satellite network near Crimea as Ukraine was planning a surprise attack on the Russian naval fleet.
Musk would go on to clarify that he did not disable the network, but instead it was not turned on when requested.
“How am I in this war?” Musk reportedly asked Isaacson. “Starlink was not meant to be involved in wars. It was so people can watch Netflix and chill and get online for school and do good peaceful things, not drone strikes.”
The news item of the Starlink satellites in Ukraine was a major topic of discussion during Musk’s virtual appearance at the All-In Summit hosted by Chamath Palihapitiya, Jason Calacanis, David Sacks and David Friedberg.
Musk told the four that Starlink has been provided to Ukraine since nearly the beginning of the war. He added that there is a ton of misinformation from the media regarding what SpaceX is doing to help in the region and the report of Starlink's potential role in a Ukrainian surprise attack.
An area near Crimea had Starlink satellites turned off, because the U.S. has sanctions against Russia, Musk said during the interview.
“We’re not allowed to actually turn on connectivity to a sanctioned country without government approval, which we did not have,” Musk said.
Musk said Ukraine gave no advance warning or a heads up before calling in the middle of the night to say they needed Starlink in this particular region turned on.
Once it was learned that a “type of Pearl Harbor attack” was planned, Musk said Starlink did not complete the request.
“They were asking us to take part in a major act of war.”
Musk said that he supports Ukraine and its government, but Ukraine is not in charge of the United States or U.S. companies.
“That’s not how it works.”
Related Link: Elon Musk Says He Assured Ukraine SpaceX Won't Turn Off Starlink In Fight Against Putin's Forces
Why It’s Important: The reaction has been mixed from those learning that Musk may have prevented a major attack on the Russian fleet. Some have praised Musk for not allowing Ukraine to complete the attack and trigger a potential nuclear war, while others say that Musk may have too much power in the region given the importance of Starlink for communications.
Musk went on to tell the All-In Podcast hosts that while he may not be President Joe Biden’s biggest fan, he would have completed the request if he received a presidential order to turn on the Starlink satellites.
No such request came through, Musk said.
Musk added that he respects the office of the White House and the president is the CEO of the United States of America.
Starlink is used in Ukraine on the war front as the only thing that works, according to Musk.
Musk said that SpaceX has continued to financially support the region by providing Starlink for free, without funding from the government, despite the government contributing large amounts of money to Ukraine.
“Why should SpaceX be excluded? That doesn’t make sense.”
Read Next: 52 Facts And Figures About Elon Musk You Might Not Know
Photo Courtesy: Frederic Legrand - COMEO On Shutterstock.
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Comments
Trade confidently with insights and alerts from analyst ratings, free reports and breaking news that affects the stocks you care about.
