According to Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, Tesla and SpaceX creator Elon Musk’s Starlink technology was “extremely efficient” in keeping Ukrainians online throughout the Russian invasion.
Fedorov, who is also Ukraine’s Minister of Digital Transformation, was the one who first tweeted at Musk on Feb. 26 pleading for Starlink stations, and Musk responded that the service was operational and that more terminals were on the way, in a historic turn that could have far-reaching implications for the future of war.
In an interview with The Washington Post on Friday, Fedorov said that Ukraine has received shipments of thousands of antennas from Musk’s companies and European friends, which have proven to be “extremely efficient” in keeping Ukrainian residents and government officials online.
Fedorov stated, “The connectivity quality is superb.” “We use thousands of terminals, possibly tens of thousands, with new shipments arriving every other day.”
Fedorov most recently tweeted on the arrival of the next shipment of Starlink stations on Friday, stating that while Russia is banning Internet access, Ukraine is “growing more open to the entire world.” He congratulated Musk, the Polish government, and Orlen, a Polish gasoline provider.
Fedorov wrote, “Ukraine is the truth.” “The truth is always victorious.”
According to the Telegraph, a Ukrainian drone squad used Starlink technology to track down Russian invaders. Aerorozvidka (Aerial Reconnaissance) unit drone teams, particularly those in more rural areas, were said to be using Starlink technology to connect to intelligence databases, allowing them to plan flight paths and strikes against Russian forces and tanks on the ground, often at night, according to the newspaper.
The report regarding the drone unit benefiting from Starlink technology has not been independently verified by Fox News, and requests for comment from Tesla and SpaceX remained unanswered on Sunday. Dmitry Rogozin, the director-general of Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, had expressed his displeasure with Musk’s use of “civilian” technology in a combat zone to sabotage Russian interests in Ukraine.