Ukrainian President Zelenskyy Awards Elon Musk the Order of Freedom
Ukraine has awarded SpaceX founder Elon Musk with a state honor as it aims to expand the use of Starlink satellite internet in its military operations.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has awarded SpaceX owner Elon Musk the Order of Freedom, one of the country's highest state honors, by a published decree.
Reason for the Award and the Role of Starlink
With an official decree published on the presidential website on Wednesday, Musk was deemed worthy of the Order of Freedom for his personal contributions to protecting human life and freedom, and for developing relations between the peoples of Ukraine and the U.S.
Musk had activated the Starlink satellite internet service over Ukraine immediately after the large-scale Russian invasion in 2022. The system has become a critical tool for Ukrainian forces' communication on the battlefield and for guiding unmanned aerial vehicles.
Request for Use on Russian Territory
Ukraine has requested to be able to use Starlink on Russian territory as well, in order to increase its attacks targeting various objectives, including ballistic missile launchers that harm its cities.
Zelenskiy conveyed that Musk initially evaluated this step as a major escalation of the war. However, stating that Ukraine has begun receiving more encouraging feedback, Zelenskyy noted that the use of Starlink on Russian territory could reduce the capabilities upon which Russia relies to prolong the war.
Shutting Down Illicit Terminals
Upon a request received before former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov's departure in July, Musk agreed to deactivate thousands of black-market Russian Starlink terminals in Ukraine, a situation that caused problems for Russian forces.