**Elon Musk’s Starlink Shutdown in Ukraine Exposed**
In a shocking revelation, billionaire Elon Musk was found to have ordered the shutdown of Starlink satellite coverage over part of Ukraine’s Kherson Oblast during a major counteroffensive in 2022. According to Reuters, citing unnamed sources, Musk instructed a senior SpaceX engineer to disable coverage near Beryslav, where Ukrainian forces were attempting to encircle Russian troops.
**Disrupting Artillery Coordination**
The move reportedly caused front-line units to lose connectivity, disabling drones and disrupting artillery coordination. A Ukrainian military source told Reuters that the outage directly contributed to the failure of the encirclement operation. This development has raised alarm among military officials in both Kyiv and Washington, highlighting the critical role Starlink plays in Ukraine’s communications infrastructure during wartime.
**Liberty of Kherson**
Ukrainian forces later liberated Kherson and other settlements on the west bank of the Dnipro River in November 2022. However, the immediate impact of the blackout sparked concern among military officials, underscoring the importance of Starlink in supporting front-line units, hospitals, schools, and other critical infrastructure.
**Musk’s Denial**
SpaceX, which operates Starlink, has not publicly confirmed the incident. When questioned about similar allegations in the past, Musk denied ever disabling Starlink terminals. However, Reuters’ sources claim that Musk’s decision to shut down coverage was motivated by fears of a Russian nuclear response if Ukraine were to achieve significant gains.
**Global Outage and Concerns**
Just a day after the reporting emerged, Starlink suffered a global outage on July 24, raising concerns about its central role in Ukraine’s communications infrastructure. The company has not disclosed the cause of the outage, but it has renewed worries about the reliability and security of Starlink during wartime.
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