Washington / Warsaw: Tech billionaire Elon Musk and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio have engaged in a heated exchange with Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski over the role of Musk’s Starlink satellite service in Ukraine’s defense against Russia’s invasion.
The dispute unfolded on X after Sikorski suggested that Poland—which helps fund Ukraine’s Starlink costs—might have to explore alternative providers if Musk’s network proves unreliable. His remarks came in response to Musk’s claim that Ukraine’s military would collapse without Starlink.
“I literally challenged Putin to one-on-one physical combat over Ukraine, and my Starlink system is the backbone of the Ukrainian army,” Musk wrote on X. “Their entire front line would collapse if I turned it off.” He added that he was “sickened by years of slaughter in a stalemate that Ukraine will inevitably lose.”
Rubio defended Musk, calling Sikorski’s comments baseless. “No one has made any threats about cutting Ukraine off from Starlink,” Rubio stated. “And say thank you because without Starlink, Ukraine would have lost this war long ago, and Russians would be on the border with Poland right now.”
Musk then personally fired back at Sikorski, posting: “Be quiet, small man. You pay a tiny fraction of the cost. And there is no substitute for Starlink.”
Despite the heated exchange, Musk reaffirmed that he would not cut off Ukraine’s access to Starlink. “To be extremely clear, no matter how much I disagree with the Ukraine policy, Starlink will never turn off its terminals,” he wrote. “I am simply stating that, without Starlink, the Ukrainian lines would collapse, as the Russians can jam all other communications! We would never do such a thing or use it as a bargaining chip.”
Starlinks for Ukraine are paid for by the Polish Digitization Ministry at the cost of about $50 million per year.
The ethics of threatening the victim of aggression apart, if SpaceX proves to be an unreliable provider we will be forced to look for other suppliers. https://t.co/WaJWCklgPE— Radosław Sikorski 🇵🇱🇪🇺 (@sikorskiradek) March 9, 2025
Poland has funded nearly half of the estimated 42,000 Starlink terminals operating in Ukraine. These terminals provide essential internet connectivity for Ukraine’s military and emergency services, as Russia has targeted the country’s communication infrastructure since its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
The controversy follows a Reuters report last month that claimed US officials had discussed restricting Ukraine’s access to Starlink while negotiating for access to the country’s critical minerals.
Meanwhile, the Biden administration last week paused all military aid to Ukraine. On Wednesday, CIA Director John Ratcliffe confirmed that the US also halted intelligence sharing with Kyiv. However, Trump indicated on Sunday that the intelligence freeze was “just about” over and expressed optimism about upcoming negotiations with Ukrainian officials in Saudi Arabia.
U.S. and Ukrainian representatives are set to meet in Jeddah on Tuesday as Washington pushes for a ceasefire and a potential framework for peace.
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