Ukraine asks Elon Musk for Starlink access to guide drone attacks

Ukraine is seeking Elon Musk's Starlink satellite internet service to enhance the operational capabilities of its drones, particularly for maintaining stable connections with operators at greater distances and mitigating the effects of electronic warfare. This request comes as Ukraine seeks ways to compensate for a significant shortage of Patriot missile interceptors, according to the Financial Times.

The Ukrainian military plans to utilize drones equipped with Starlink for missions targeting Russian missile launch sites, command centers, logistics hubs, and other infrastructure involved in missile attacks. Military analyst Franz Stefan Gady noted that such drones have already proven effective on the battlefield in Ukraine, suggesting their use beyond Ukrainian borders could be valuable in "hunting" Russian missile launchers.

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Ukraine hopes that Starlink satellite internet will allow drones to maintain a more stable connection with more distant operators and prevent conventional electronic warfare measures from damaging the drones so easily.

Sources indicate that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy discussed the possibility of obtaining permission for Starlink-enabled drone use with then-U.S. President Donald Trump during a meeting at the White House in July. Kyiv reportedly proposed limiting drone operations to within 200 kilometers of the Russian border. However, participants in the meeting suggested that Trump did not offer clear support for the idea.

Earlier reports from The Atlantic, citing sources close to former Ukrainian Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov, indicated that Musk was hesitant to grant Ukraine access to Starlink technology that could be used to strike Russian positions from which missiles are launched into Ukrainian cities.

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If they were also used outside of Ukraine, they could be very useful in 'hunting' Russian missile launchers.