A Ukrainian official harshly chided SpaceX CEO Elon Musk for instructing engineers to disable Starlink's satellite network over Crimea in order to thwart a Ukrainian assault on Russian battleships. The new biography of Musk reveals that the South African-born magnate inquired, "How am I in this war?" during an interview with writer Walter Isaacson. Isaacson's book notes that Musk was concerned he might be helping to bring about a "mini Pearl Harbor" that might have initiated a nuclear conflict.
A Ukrainian official condemned Tesla and SpaceX CEO, Elon Musk, for ordering engineers to disable Starlink's satellite system over Crimea last year in order to prevent potential Ukrainian attacks on Russian warships. In the biography of Musk, written by Walter Isaacson, the South African-born entrepreneur asked, "How am I in this war?" This occurred in the early stages of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, when Western governments were mobilizing resources to arm Kyiv with defensive systems--surrounding the first installation of Starlink in the country. Elon Musk cited his concern of the Ukrainian assault on Russian vessels potentially prompting a nuclear war. The book "Elon Musk" is due to be published Tuesday. Mykhailo Podolyak, an aide to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, displayed his outrage on X (formerly known as Twitter) which Musk bought in 2021. Podolyak reproached him for not allowing Ukrainian drones to take down part of the Russian military fleet via Starlink breakdown, leading to the firing of Kalibr missiles into Ukrainian cities. Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine's digital minister, posted a picture of Starlink boxes on the back of a truck, showing the service's presence in the country. The global Starlink network, consisting of over 4,000 satellites that offer service to more than 50 countries, was the means of communication for significant battlefields in Ukraine. Isaacson added that Musk went through a phone conversation with U.S. national security advisor Jake Sullivan and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff U.S. Army General Mark Milley, in which the situation was analyzed. Musk and Fedorov were also conversing via text; the Ukrainian minister begged Musk to restore Starlink's connection to allow deployment of Ukrainian submarine drones, to which Musk retorted the he thought Ukraine to be "going too far and inviting strategic defeat". According to Isaacson's book, Musk stated, "We did not want to be a part of that."
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