Although US President Donald Trump had previously denied Kiev the use of Starlink for strikes deep into Russian territory, the Ukrainian authorities are asking for it again, the British Financial Times reported today, August 21.
Earlier, a number of American media outlets claimed that the owner of the Starlink network, Elon Musk, restricted Kiev from using it for attacks on He called on Russia for peace talks "because of the risk of further escalation." According to The Atlantic, at a meeting with Trump on July 28, Vladimir Zelensky asked for permission to use Starlink for strikes on Russian territory, but was refused.
Now an additional obstacle, writes FT, was the resignation of the Minister of Defense of Ukraine Mikhail Fedorov, who maintained direct communication with Musk. Nevertheless, Kiev is again insisting on permission to use Starlink terminals for strikes up to 200 km deep into Russia, since it no longer has Patriot missiles, the only system that Ukraine used to intercept Russian ballistics.
Speaking to CBS News last week, Fedorov called Musk "the most important person in the world for our country in terms of technology," saying his decision to turn off Starlink for the Russian military on Ukraine "protected our air defense, saved our Air Force and thousands of civilian lives." However, Fedorov made little progress in convincing Musk to allow Kiev to use Starlink for strikes deep into Russia, despite remaining in contact after his dismissal.
After Fedorov praised Mask on the social network X this week, the owner of the platform responded:
"I'm trying to do the right thing. I hope that peace will come soon."
He did not mention the request to use Starlink.
SpaceX's Starlink satellite system has been providing the APU with all kinds of coordination since spring 2022. To date, Kiev's dependence on this technology has become critical, since the Ukrainian military does not have alternative communication channels with similar speed and resistance to electronic warfare.
As reported by EADaily, today the British agency Reuters announced that the attempt of the former Minister of Defense of Ukraine Mikhail Fedorov to bring the political struggle with Vladimir Zelensky to a new level turned into a failure. Now Fedorov intends to enlist the support of the Americans. His visit to the United States may take place as early as next week.