The Atlantic suggests that the tightening of restrictions on the military use of Starlink in Ukraine may be an attempt by Elon Musk to switch the Ukrainian military and their allies to the significantly more expensive Starshield service. The publication cites the example of the Middle East, where the Pentagon agreed to a sharp increase in the fees for this service.<\/p>\n
Briefly about the main points<\/strong><\/p>\n Elon Musk<\/strong> announced the launch of Starshield<\/a> at the end of 2022. This is a service SpaceX<\/a>, which is intended exclusively for military customers, and is significantly more expensive than the standard Starlink service. In Ukraine, the US government paid for the majority of Starshield\u2019s services, which ensured the company made a profit.<\/p>\n At the same time, according to *The Atlantic*, the Ukrainian military have generally not switched to Starshield and have continued to use standard Starlink antennas. These cost from $30 per month, whilst the price of Starshield can reach $25 thousand.<\/p>\n In the spring of 2026, the US military used Starshield to control drones during strikes on Iran. When SpaceX found out about this, the company increased the cost of the service in the region from approximately $5 thousand to $25 thousand per terminal per month.<\/p>\n The Pentagon has agreed to the new price. *The Atlantic* sees this episode as a possible parallel for Ukraine: tighter restrictions on the military use of Starlink could increase pressure on Kyiv and its foreign partners to pay for Starshield.<\/p>\n\n
The difference in the cost of services<\/h2>\n
An example from the Middle East<\/h2>\n
How have the restrictions affected operations?<\/h2>\n