Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian President, took to social media over the weekend to confirm that a new shipment of Starlink terminals would arrive in the country this week. Zelensky thanked Musk and said the new terminals would help provide internet access in destroyed cities.
The country's vice prime minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, made a public plea for help from the company. Less than 48 hours after Russia invaded the world, Fedorov took to social media.
While you try to colonize Mars, Russia will try to occupy Ukraine, Fedorov said when addressing Musk.
Musk said that he would add more terminals. It seems like he's delivered so far.
Ukraine's internet infrastructure has withstood a battering of cyber attacks and disruptions since the invasion. Alp Toker of the monitoring organization NetBlocks recently told the Guardian that the resilience is partly due to Ukraine's diverse internet infrastructure.
Lanet, a local broadband provider, claims they have been forced to hold off on repairs to some damaged infrastructure due to active military action.
Fedorov called on volunteer hackers to conduct cyberattacks against Russian businesses, banks, and government entities. The Ukrainian government urged the internet corporation to sever Russia from the global internet, an extreme move that was rejected.
The internet infrastructure efforts of Starlink have faced challenges. Musk claimed over the weekend that some Starlink terminals were being jammed for several hours at a time. The company did not respond to the request for comment.
Similar disruptions were reported last week by competing satellite internet firm Viasat, though it is still unclear if the Russian government interfered with Starlink services. On the first day of Russia's invasion, Viasat said it experienced a partial network outage. 11 days after the initial disruption, Viasat's Ukraine networks were still experiencing severe disruptions.
Musk has shown a willingness to aid Ukraine, but he won't follow the lead of other U.S. companies and block access to questionable Russian news sources.
Some governments have told Starlink to block Russian news sources.
Musk has become known for intervening in disaster situations. The billionaire sent Starlink terminals to the small Pacific Island nation of Tonga after a massive volcanic eruption knocked most of its inhabitants offline. Musk made a splashy show of that exchange, but the utility of that effort was not clear.
Starlink wasn't able to launch its free internet service in Tonga until late February, right around the same time that the severed fiber cables came back online. The effect of Starlink was limited, though recent reports suggest it may play an important role in bolstering connection through some of the island's most remote villages.
The Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Tonga said that it was odd that a volcanic eruption would bring to our shores the latest in satellite and communications technology.
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