A new biography of Elon Musk reveals that he secretly asked engineers to disconnect the Starlink satellite to prevent Ukrainian suicide boats from raiding Crimea.
In a biography titled Elon Musk Expected to be released on September 12, author Walter Isaacson said that billionaire Elon Musk last year asked SpaceX engineers to disconnect the Starlink satellite communications network near the Crimean coast to prevent Ukraine's raid on the fleet. Russian navy.
According to Isaacson, when Ukraine's unmanned suicide boats carrying explosives approached the Russian Black Sea Fleet in Crimea, they suddenly "lost connection and washed ashore."
Musk made this decision due to concerns that Moscow would use nuclear weapons to respond to Kiev's attack on the Crimean peninsula, after he spoke with senior Russian officials, according to Isaacson. But these concerns of Musk did not materialize, even as Ukraine stepped up its raids on Crimea.
US billionaire Elon Musk in Florida in January 1. Image: Reuters
After Russia disrupted Ukraine's communications system shortly before launching hostilities at the end of February 2, Musk agreed to provide Ukraine with Starlink satellite equipment worth millions of dollars produced by SpaceX.
Starlinks are important equipment for Ukraine's military operations. Even if mobile phone networks and the Internet are disrupted, Starlink allows Ukraine to maintain communication and connection with remotely controlled vehicles.
However, after Ukraine used a suicide boat to attack Russia, Musk began to doubt his decision.
“What am I doing in this war? Starlink should not have gotten involved in the war. It's for people to be able to watch Netflix, relax and study online, and do good things in peace, not for drone attacks,” he told Isaacson.
Author Isaacson said Musk soon spoke by phone with US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley, as well as the Russian ambassador to the US to address their concerns. Washington and Moscow.
Ukrainian soldiers use Starlink satellite equipment in Kreminna on January 6. Image: Reuters
Meanwhile, Mykhailo Fedorov, deputy prime minister of Ukraine, urgently asked Musk to restore the connection by talking about the effectiveness of unmanned suicide boats. “I just want you, the person who is changing the world with technology, to know this,” Fedorov sent a message to Musk.
Musk, the chief executive of Tesla and the space exploration company SpaceX, responded that he was impressed with the design of the drone boat, but could not reconnect the Starlink network in Crimea because “Ukraine is going too far and the risk of strategic failure,” according to Isaacson.
However, Isaacson said SpaceX has finally reached an agreement with the US and European governments to provide Ukraine with 100.000 new satellite dishes in early 2023.
Last week, the US and its allies in the Five Eyes intelligence alliance including Britain, Australia, Canada and New Zealand accused Russian hackers of targeting Ukraine's battlefield communications system. According to Ukraine, malicious code that Russia designed to intercept data sent to the Starlink satellite. Russia has not commented on this information.
Thanh Tam (Follow CNN)
