Elon Musk says Starlink network in Ukraine has not received U.S. funding

Musk, the world's richest person and chief executive of Tesla Inc., said SpaceX spends nearly $20 million a month for maintaining satellite services in Ukraine

October 19, 2022 12:03 pm | Updated 12:59 pm IST

File photo of Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk

File photo of Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk | Photo Credit: AP

Billionaire Elon Musk said on Tuesday SpaceX's Starlink services have not received any funding from the U.S. Department of Defense, a day after reports said The Pentagon is considering paying for the Starlink satellite network in war-torn Ukraine.

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SpaceX is losing approximately $20 million a month from unpaid service and costs related to security measures for cyberwar defence, but "we'll keep doing it (sigh)", Musk tweeted.

"No money from DoD, but several other countries, orgs & individuals are paying for ~11k/25k terminals," Musk said.

Musk, the world's richest person and chief executive of Tesla Inc., said SpaceX spends nearly $20 million a month for maintaining satellite services in Ukraine and that the company has spent about $80 million to enable and support and support Starlink there.

The Pentagon is considering paying for the service to Ukraine, Politico reported on Monday, citing two U.S. officials involved in the discussions.

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