Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio have engaged in a heated exchange with Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski regarding the role of Musk’s Starlink satellite service in Ukraine.
The dispute unfolded on social media platform X, where Sikorski suggested that Poland—currently funding Ukraine’s Starlink access at an annual cost of $50 million—might seek alternative providers if SpaceX proves to be “unreliable.” His remarks followed Musk’s assertion that Ukraine’s military would collapse without Starlink.
“I literally challenged [Russian President Vladimir] Putin to single combat over Ukraine, and my Starlink system is the backbone of Ukraine’s army. Their entire front line would collapse if I turned it off,” Musk stated. He criticized the prolonged conflict, calling it a “stalemate” that Ukraine is bound to lose.
Sikorski responded by questioning the ethics of threatening a nation under attack. Rubio, in Musk’s defense, dismissed the Polish minister’s concerns as unfounded. “No one has made any threats about cutting Ukraine off from Starlink,” Rubio said, adding that without the satellite network, Ukraine would have lost the war and Russian forces would be at Poland’s doorstep.
Musk later directly addressed Sikorski, telling him to “be quiet, small man,” and emphasizing that Poland’s contribution covers only a small portion of the overall cost. He insisted there is “no substitute” for Starlink.
Amid concerns that Starlink access could be used as leverage, Musk reaffirmed that SpaceX would not cut service to Ukraine. “To be extremely clear, no matter how much I disagree with Ukraine policy, Starlink will never turn off its terminals,” he said, explaining that Russian forces are capable of jamming all other communication networks.
Poland has financed nearly half of the estimated 42,000 Starlink terminals in Ukraine, which have been essential for military operations and civilian communications since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.
Meanwhile, former U.S. President Donald Trump recently halted military aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine. However, he hinted on Sunday that the intelligence freeze was nearing its end and expressed optimism about upcoming peace talks with Ukrainian officials in Saudi Arabia. U.S. officials are scheduled to meet their Ukrainian counterparts in Jeddah on Tuesday, aiming to secure a ceasefire and lay the groundwork for a peace deal.
