Elon Musk has stated that he declined to provide Kyiv with access to his Starlink communications network concerning Crimea in order to abstain from being involved in a "significant act of war".
Kyiv issued an urgent plea to turn on Starlink in Sevastopol, the site of a critical Russian naval port, he revealed.
He responded following the publication of a book which stated that he had disabled Starlink to prevent a drone attack on vessels belonging to Russia.
The Ukrainian official claimed this action enabledRussia to launch attacks, characterizing it as "malevolent".
He stated that Russian naval ships had been involved in lethal attacks against non-combatants.
He stated that, had Elon Musk not prohibited the use of Ukrainian drones to disrupt a portion of the Russian military armada through Starlink disruption, the fleet would have been able to launch Kalibr missiles at Ukrainian towns.
He questioned why some individuals were so determined to protect war criminals and their intent to take lives, asking if they were cognizant of the wickedness they were committing and promoting.
A biography of the billionaire by Walter Isaacson asserts that Mr Musk disabled Ukraine's utilization of Starlink out of fear that an attack by Russia's maritime fleet in Crimea could spark a nuclear response from the Kremlin.
Submarine drones armed with explosives, launched by Ukraine, were directed towards Russian vessels in Sevastopol, according to Mr Isaacson. The drones, however, lost contact with Starlink and ended up on shore without causing any damage.
Starlink terminals have been indispensable for sustaining internet access and communication in Ukraine, as the unrest has disrupted the nation's infrastructure.
Shortly after Russia initiated a comprehensive assault against its neighbour in February of last year, SpaceX - in which Mr Musk owns the lion's share of the stock - began to supply thousands of Starlink satellite dishes to Ukraine.
Mr Musk commented on X that SpaceX had not deactivated anything concerning the book's allegation as it had not previously been enabled in such areas.
He mentioned that government officials had made an urgent request for them to turn on the Starlink system right up to Sevastopol in order to render useless a great number of the Russian vessels that were moored there.
Had I consented to their demand, SpaceX would have been openly involved in a serious act of war and a rise in tension.
Dmitry Medvedev, Russia's ex-premier, tweeted: "If the content of Isaacson's literature is indeed correct, then it appears Musk is the last sensible mind in North America."
In 2014, Russia carried out an illegal annexation of Crimea, which preceded the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Moscow eight years later.
In the past, Mr Musk has affirmed that the Starlink system has come to form the connectivity backbone of Ukraine all the way to the front lines, however, it is not permitted to be exploited for drone strikes at a long distance.
Mr Musk emphasized his feelings on the matter to Mr Isaacson, inquiring: "What is my role in this war? Starlink wasn't intended to be involved in military conflicts. It was designed so that people could watch their favourite movies, relax, or access the internet for educational purposes, not for use in drone strikes."
He also gave his own sentiment on the matter, called for a ceasefire and declared that Ukrainians and Russians were losing their lives for minuscule territorial gains, which was not worth it.
He sparked outrage in the previous year when he presented an idea to end the war that would involve the global community officially recognising Crimea as a part of Russia, as well as requiring people living in territories acquired by Russia in the previous year to make a decision on the nation they wanted to be affiliated with.
Garry Kasparov, the celebrated Russian chess grandmaster, expressed that the plan exhibited "ethical imbecility".
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