Elon Musk has personally rejected a Ukrainian request to extend its satellite internet service to Crimea. The SpaceX CEO fears an attempt to retake the peninsula from Russian forces could lead to nuclear war, Insider reports.
After Russia’s February 24 invasion of Ukraine, Musk provided Kyiv with thousands of Starlink systems, allowing Ukrainian armed forces to communicate in dead zones. The satellite receivers consume little power and can apparently be linked to reconnaissance drones, providing valuable real-time information on Russian movements.
Most recently, however, there had been satellite failures in Ukraine, which had “catastrophic” consequences in Ukraine’s wartime communications, the Financial Times reported. In addition, Musk is said to have negotiated with Putin, according to US political expert Ian Bremmer. Putin’s condition was apparently that Crimea remain under Russian control.
Elon Musk firmly denied this via twitter. But Musk clearly denies it! He only spoke to Putin once and that was 18 months ago.
The shelling on Tuesday only delayed the repair of previously damaged objects, said Selenskyj in his video speech on Wednesday night after the second wave of Russian attacks. “Where there have been losses, there is already our will to build. Where there were any enemy hopes, there will only be ruins of Russian statehood.” Russia fired 28 missiles at his country on Tuesday, Zelensky said. Ukrainian air defense intercepted 20 of them. Almost all of the 15 drones were shot down.
Russia has apparently massively transferred weapons from Belarus to Crimea, reports the Institute for the Study of War. Although this makes an attack from Belarus in the direction of Ukraine less likely, Putin wants to strengthen the weakened parts of the country. Confidence in their own strength in the areas in the north and west of the country around the Luhansk region, where Ukraine is currently launching massive counterattacks, has fallen. Around 500 tons of ammunition and 13 trains with weapons and equipment have already been and are still to be transported, according to images from social networks, according to the ISW, which cites the main Ukrainian military intelligence service (GUR).
The Russian head of the occupation administration in Cherson, Vladimir Saldo, has also started a program to bring up to 40,000 children and adults from the Cherson region to Russian-occupied Crimea.
According to US President Joe Biden, Kremlin chief Putin misjudged his war of aggression against Ukraine. “I think he’s a rational actor who has miscalculated significantly,” Biden told US broadcaster CNN in an interview broadcast on Tuesday evening (local time). Putin had wrongly assumed that the Ukrainians would submit to a Russian invasion. “I think he thought he was going to be welcomed with open arms,” Biden said. “I think he just completely miscalculated.”
The seven leading democratic economic powers have strongly condemned the recent Russian rocket attacks on Ukraine and pledged further military support to the Ukrainian armed forces. After a video conference with Zelenskyy, the G7 leaders issued a joint statement recalling that “indiscriminate attacks on innocent civilians constituted a war crime”. They threatened Russia with further sanctions against individuals and institutions inside and outside the country that supported the war of aggression politically or economically. The G7 pledged further financial, humanitarian and military assistance to Ukraine.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has again threatened Russia with consequences if nuclear weapons are used in the Ukraine war. “If Russia uses nuclear weapons, this will have various consequences, including the use of smaller nuclear weapons,” the Norwegian told the news portal “ZDFheute.de”. He doesn’t want to go into too much detail. “The most important thing is to prevent that from happening.” The risk of Russia using nuclear weapons remains low, Stoltenberg said. “But the escalation in Ukraine and the nuclear threat to Russia make it imperative that we take them seriously and be prepared.”
Before a meeting of NATO defense ministers on Wednesday, Federal Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht (SPD) sharply condemned the Russian rocket attacks in Ukraine. “Putin openly terrorizes the civilian population by firing rockets into Ukrainian cities. His contempt for people obviously increases with the failure of his plans,” Lambrecht told the newspapers of the Funke media group. “We must continue our support for Ukraine unabated.” The delivery of anti-aircraft systems is therefore the right step.
Lambrecht had announced that the first of four state-of-the-art Iris-T SLM air defense systems would now be made available to Ukraine. According to a “Spiegel” report, the unit has already been handed over. According to the Ministry of Defense, three more units will be delivered in the coming year.
The Ukrainian Defense Minister Resnikov thanked Twitter for arms deliveries from the USA and Germany on Wednesday night. “A new era of air defense” has begun in Ukraine, Reznikov wrote. The Iris-T air defense system from Germany has already arrived. Nasams rocket launcher systems from the USA are on the way. “That’s just the beginning. And we need more. Undoubtedly, Russia is a terrorist state,” the minister wrote. He thanked Lambrecht for their “strong willingness” to support Ukraine. “We will win,” Reznikov tweeted.
That will be important on Wednesday
The defense ministers of the NATO countries are meeting in Brussels for a two-day meeting. In addition to the war in Ukraine, the topic is also efforts to expand the capacities of the armaments industry. After the alleged acts of sabotage against the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipelines, there should also be additional protection for critical infrastructure.
In New York, the UN General Assembly votes on the illegal Russian annexation of Ukraine. The vote is also seen as a global mood test on Moscow’s war of aggression. A corresponding resolution to vote condemns Russia’s annexation and declares it invalid. In addition, the Kremlin is asked to reverse the incorporation of the partially occupied regions of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhia and Cherson.
Putin is expected in Moscow at the Russian Energy Week.
Also Read: The October 11 Ukraine Update
