Ukraine reached a deal with Elon Musk’s Space Exploration Technologies Corp. to receive thousands more Starlink antennas to help counter Russian air attacks, according to a top government official, Report informs via Bloomberg.
More than 10,000 of the devices, which provide internet service beamed down from satellites, will be sent to Ukraine in the coming months, said Mykhailo Fedorov, deputy prime minister and minister for digital transformation, in an interview in his office in downtown Kyiv.
“SpaceX and Musk quickly react to problems and help us,” said Fedorov, adding that he has talked to Musk directly. “Musk assured us he will continue to support Ukraine. When we had a powerful blackout, I messaged him on that day and he momentarily reacted and has already delivered some steps. He understands the situation.”
"While there’s no contract yet, the governments of several European Union countries are ready to share payment, he said, declining to publicly identify them. “As of now all financial issues have been resolved,” he said, adding that Ukraine will need to find additional funding in the spring.