US and EU Consider Paying Musk for Ukraine Starlink Costs... Did the Tweet Work?

Musk Reacts to "$80 Million Loss" Tweet
Essential for Ukrainian Military... "Helps Restore Communication Infrastructure"

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] The U.S. Department of Defense and the European Union (EU) are reportedly reviewing the payment of costs for SpaceX's Starlink service provided to Ukraine. This move is believed to have been influenced by Elon Musk, who leads SpaceX, expressing on his Twitter account that it is difficult to continue offering the Starlink service free of charge.

On the 17th (local time), the U.S. political news outlet Politico reported, citing U.S. Department of Defense officials, that the Department of Defense is reviewing the payment of costs for the Starlink service supported to Ukraine through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) package. Previously, Starlink had provided approximately 20,000 Starlink terminals to Ukraine and had been continuing to support part of the service costs.

The EU is also reportedly entering discussions to pay for the Starlink service costs. Major foreign media, citing EU officials, reported, "Josep Borrell, the EU Commission’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs, instructed to devise a plan to resolve the issue after Musk threatened to stop Starlink operating costs," and "The EU is reviewing whether to sign a formal contract with SpaceX and establish a joint fund to cover service costs going forward."

This is analyzed to have been influenced by Musk’s earlier tweet stating that free service support is financially difficult. On the 14th, Musk posted on his Twitter account, "We have incurred an $80 million loss while providing Starlink service to Ukraine," and expressed difficulty by saying, "We cannot continue to send thousands of terminals that use up to 100 times more data than a typical household."

After controversy over the tweet grew, Musk reversed his position within a day, posting on Twitter, "Unlike other companies receiving billions in tax benefits, Starlink is suffering huge losses in the satellite internet business, but we still have to do good," and "We will continue to fund Ukraine for free." It is also reported that SpaceX requested funding support for Starlink service from the U.S. Department of Defense but later withdrew the request.

The reason the U.S. and EU are willing to accept Musk and SpaceX’s support request is that Starlink is evaluated to be playing a significant role in the Ukraine war. The Starlink service has especially established itself as a key communication method for the Ukrainian military, whose ground communication networks have been destroyed, directly impacting the course of the conflict.

Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister, stated that the Starlink service helped restore energy and communication infrastructure in key areas and that thanks to Starlink, "Ukrainian military and civilians were able to use the internet."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.