Serhiy «Flash» Beskrestnov stated that he does not expect Starlink to be shut down in Ukraine following Elon Musk’s political comments. The telecommunications expert attributed his assessment to the stable cooperation with SpaceX and the company’s commercial interests. At the same time, he described the possibility of the service becoming available in Russia as a hypothetical risk.
Briefly about the main points
- Beskrestnov said it was unlikely that Starlink would be taken offline in Ukraine.
- He cited Ukraine’s stable relationship with SpaceX.
- Rumours amongst the military intensified following Musk’s posts.
- Approved terminals operate within the Ukrainian «whitelist».
- An expert described Starlink access in Russia as merely a possible scenario.
Collaboration with SpaceX and ongoing verification of terminals
Beskrestnov described Ukraine’s partnership with SpaceX as being good and stable. In his view, Musk is primarily driven by business considerations, and cooperation with Ukraine is beneficial for the company. This is an expert’s assessment, not a new official guarantee from SpaceX or Starlink.
At present Starlink is operational in Ukraine as part of the terminal verification procedure. The company linked the «whitelist» mechanism to coordination with the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Digital Transformation. The Ministry of Defence had previously reported that approved devices remain active, whilst Russian terminals are blocked. This approach involves targeted restrictions on unauthorised devices, rather than a complete shutdown of the network.
Musk’s political posts have sparked a new wave of rumours
According to «Flash», concerns about the disruption of satellite communications periodically arise amongst the Ukrainian military. On this occasion, they were linked to Musk’s posts, as well as rumours spread by Russian Telegram channels.
Musk backed the statement Donald Trump on the need to replace the President of Ukraine. Separately, commenting on a video criticising Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries, he wrote that Volodymyr Zelenskyy had «gone too far». These political comments did not include any announcement regarding the suspension of Starlink in Ukraine.
Beskrestnov described access to Starlink in Russia as a separate scenario
Unexpected decisions, in the opinion of Beskrestnova, may potentially relate to access to Starlink within Russia. He cited this possibility as a scenario that should be taken into account, rather than as information about a decision already taken by the company.
There has been no public announcement from SpaceX regarding the commercial launch of Starlink in Russia. It was previously reported that the company permitted use of the network within Ukraine, including the occupied territories, but restricted its use within the Russian Federation itself. Access to the service may therefore be subject to certain geographical and functional restrictions.
