SpaceX limits Starlink use in Ukraine, company president says

Use of space internet to help defend country from Russia deemed to go against terms of service

A Starlink satellite-based broadband system used by Ukrainian servicemen is seen in Bakhmut on 1 February, 2023, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine (Getty Images)

SpaceX has limited the use of its satellite internet service Starlink in Ukraine over concerns the technology had been “weaponised”.

SpaceX president Gwynne Sholtwell said that Ukraine’s military will be unable to use the space-based internet to control drones in the region during the country’s war with Russia.

Starlink, which has provided Ukraine’s military with broadband communications in its defence against Russia’s military, was “never never meant to be weaponized,” Ms Shotwell said during a conference in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday.

“However, Ukrainians have leveraged it in ways that were unintentional and not part of any agreement,” she said.

Speaking later with reporters, Shotwell referred to reports that the Ukrainian military had used the Starlink service to control drones.

Ukraine has made effective use of unmanned aircraft for spotting enemy positions, targeting long-range fires and dropping bombs.

“There are things that we can do to limit their ability to do that,” she said, referring to Starlink’s use with drones. “There are things that we can do, and have done.”

Ms Shotwell declined to say what measures SpaceX had taken.

Using Starlink with drones went beyond the scope of an agreement SpaceX has with the Ukrainian government, Ms Shotwell said, adding the contract was intended for humanitarian purposes such as providing broadband internet to hospitals, banks and families affected by Russia’s invasion.

“We know the military is using them for comms, and that’s ok,” she said. “But our intent was never to have them use it for offensive purposes.”

SpaceX has privately shipped truckloads of Starlink terminals to Ukraine, allowing the country’s military to communicate by plugging them in and connecting them with the nearly 4,000 satellites SpaceX has launched into low-Earth orbit so far.

Governments including the United States and France have paid for other shipments of Starlink terminals on top of those funded privately by SpaceX.

Russia has attempted to jam Starlink signals in the region, though SpaceX countered by hardening the service’s software, Elon Musk, the company’s chief executive, has said.

Asked if SpaceX had anticipated Starlink’s use for offensive purposes in Ukraine when deciding to ship terminals into conflict zones, Ms Shotwell said: “We didn’t think about it. I didn’t think about it. Our Starlink team may have, I don’t know. But we learned pretty quickly.”

Starlink had suffered service outages in Ukraine late last year, for reasons SpaceX did not explain. Asked if those outages were related to SpaceX’s efforts to curb offensive use of Starlink, Shotwell said: “I don’t want to answer it because I’m not sure I know the answer.

Mr Musk addressed the issue in a tweet last week.

“SpaceX Starlink has become the connectivity backbone of Ukraine all the way up to the front lines. This is the damned if you do part,” he wrote.

“However, we are not allowing Starlink to be used for long-range drone strikes. This is the damned if you don’t part.”

Additional reporting from agencies.