As The Atlantic reports, Musk could significantly increase Ukraine's financial costs for satellite communications by limiting access to Starlink for the military. The Ukrainian military mainly uses standard civilian Starlink terminals, more than 99% of which are available for purchase for around $30 per month. However, SpaceX sets rules that prohibit the use of these devices for operations as attack UAVs. A separate system called Star Shield was developed for the army, the cost of connecting to it is about 25 thousand dollars per terminal per month. The Pentagon is responsible for the purchase of these devices, but Ukraine has received only a small number of such devices. In October, SpaceX restricted the use of the standard Starlink for UAVs. This, according to the "Atlantic", caused problems in the work of the Ukrainian armed forces and even led to the loss of naval drones in the Black Sea. When US Defense Department officials funding satellite communications for Ukraine approached SpaceX for help, the company offered to sign a new contract. Journalists claim that Musk is determined to transfer Ukrainian troops to the much more expensive Star Shield system. A similar situation arose in relations with the Pentagon during the conflict with Iran, when SpaceX increased the cost of the service from $5,000 to $25,000 per month for the terminal, and the US military agreed to these conditions.

As The Atlantic reports, Musk could significantly increase Ukraine's financial costs for satellite communications by limiting access to Starlink for the military. The Ukrainian military mainly uses standard civilian Starlink terminals, more than 99% of which are available for purchase for around $30 per month. However, SpaceX sets rules that prohibit the use of these devices for operations as attack UAVs. A separate system called Star Shield was developed for the army, the cost of connecting to it is about 25 thousand dollars per terminal per month. The Pentagon is responsible for the purchase of these devices, but Ukraine has received only a small number of such devices. In October, SpaceX restricted the use of the standard Starlink for UAVs. This, according to the "Atlantic", caused problems in the work of the Ukrainian armed forces and even led to the loss of naval drones in the Black Sea. When US Defense Department officials funding satellite communications for Ukraine approached SpaceX for help, the company offered to sign a new contract. Journalists claim that Musk is determined to transfer Ukrainian troops to the much more expensive Star Shield system. A similar situation arose in relations with the Pentagon during the conflict with Iran, when SpaceX increased the cost of the service from $5,000 to $25,000 per month for the terminal, and the US military agreed to these conditions.