In September of 2022, US President for Life hopeful Donald Trump‘s good buddy Elon Musk sabotaged a Ukraine counteroffensive according to former employees. Musk order Starlink connections to Ukraine cut off. Drone terminals no longer functioned, artillery communications were cut off along with battlefield communications capabilities. Ukrainian troops, however, ultimately succeeded in reclaiming Beryslav, Kherson, and additional territory held by Vlad Putin‘s forces. In a March post on X, Musk said Starlink has not been used to influence the war: “We would never do such a thing.” (Daily Beast)

“We have to do this,” Michael Nicolls, the Starlink engineer, told colleagues upon receiving the order, one of these people said. Staffers complied, the three people told Reuters, deactivating at least a hundred Starlink terminals, their hexagon-shaped cells going dark on an internal map of the company’s coverage. The move also affected other areas seized by Russia, including some of Donetsk province further east. – Reuters

Musk’s order was an early glimpse of the power the magnate now wields in geopolitics and global security because of Starlink, a fast-growing satellite internet service that barely existed early this decade and now provides connectivity even in remote areas of the world. Even before his brief role as financial backer and advisor to U.S. President Donald Trump, the success of Starlink – and the unrivaled connectivity it offers across the planet – had given Musk increasing influence with political leaders, governments and militaries worldwide. Reuters