Ukraine vows to 'find a solution' to keep Starlink working amid SpaceX funding issue

Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak, on Friday, assured that Ukraine will "find a solution" to keep the country’s internet service working. Podolyak's statement comes hours after news surfaced that Elon Musk’s satellite communication company SpaceX had delivered a letter to the Pentagon to state that it can no longer continue to fund its Starlink services in the war-hit country.

“Let's be honest. Like it or not, @elonmusk helped us survive the most critical moments of war. Business has the right to its own strategies. will find a solution to keep Starlink working. We expect that the company will provide stable connection till the end of negotiations,” Podolyak wrote on Twitter. 

According to documents obtained by CNN, SpaceX, the company owned by the world’s richest man, sent a letter to the Pentagon in September in which it urged the latter to take over the funding of Starlink services in Ukraine. Stating that it will be unable to continue doing so, SpaceX said:  "We are not in a position to further donate terminals to Ukraine, or fund the existing terminals for an indefinite period of time,” CNN quoted SpaceX’s director of government sales as saying in the letter. 

What has led to Starlink's funding issue?

According to CNN, a previous letter sent by a SpaceX consultant to the Pentagon read: “SpaceX faces terribly difficult decisions here. I do not think they have the financial ability to provide any additional terminals or service as requested by General Zaluzhniy.”

A tweet by Musk reveals that Starlink services in Ukraine cost $80 million to SpaceX, with the cost set to reach $100 million towards the end of this year. “This operation has cost SpaceX $80M & will exceed $100M by end of year,” Musk wrote on October 7. Furthermore, another tweet published by Musk on October 14 sheds light on SpaceX’s multiple Starlink-related operations that contribute to the funding issue. "In addition to terminals, we have to create, launch, maintain & replenish satellites & ground stations & pay telcos for access to Internet via gateways. We’ve also had to defend against cyberattacks & jamming, which are getting harder,” he wrote.