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Starlink Could Help Ukraine Hunt Russia’s Iskanders—Musk Reportedly Put Decision on White House
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Elon Musk previously told former Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov that he would be open to allowing Ukraine to use Starlink-equipped drones for strikes inside Russia, but said the final decision was political and needed to come from the White House, the Financial Times reported on August 30.
The reported conversations come as Ukraine searches for new ways to destroy Russian ballistic missile launchers before they fire, particularly as shortages of Patriot interceptors leave Kyiv with limited options for stopping ballistic missiles once they are airborne.
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President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has sought permission from Musk to extend the use of Starlink-equipped Ukrainian drones as far as 200 kilometers, or roughly 125 miles, inside Russia.
Such an expansion could significantly improve Ukraine’s ability to hunt mobile Russian ballistic missile launchers, which typically operate far behind the front line and can rapidly move into position, launch and relocate.
Fedorov said such a capability would probably have a major battlefield impact.
People familiar with the matter told the Financial Times that Musk had previously indicated to Fedorov that he was open to allowing Ukrainian Starlink-equipped drones to operate beyond Ukraine’s borders against Russian targets.
Musk, however, reportedly told Ukrainian officials that authorization for such operations was ultimately a political decision that would need to be made by the White House.
The issue has become increasingly important as Russia intensifies attacks on Ukrainian cities, critical infrastructure, factories and warehouses using ballistic missiles and massive waves of attack drones.
Ukraine’s supply of Patriot interceptors remains critically constrained as global stocks of the US-made missiles come under pressure. Patriot is one of the few systems available to Ukraine capable of reliably intercepting the ballistic missiles Russia uses in attacks on Ukrainian cities.
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That shortage has pushed Kyiv to pursue what military planners sometimes describe as targeting the “archer” rather than the “arrow”—destroying Russian missile launchers on the ground instead of relying exclusively on scarce interceptors to shoot down missiles after launch.
Previously, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy awarded American businessman and head of SpaceX Elon Musk the Order of Liberty, the highest Ukrainian state honor that can be bestowed on foreign nationals.
According to the document, Musk received the award for his “outstanding personal merits” in “protecting human life and freedom and developing relations between the peoples of Ukraine and the United States of America.”
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