Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digitalization of Poland, Krzysztof Gawkowski, said that his country will continue to buy Starlink for Ukraine because it is «strategically important.» According to him, Poland spends $200 million a year on supporting satellite internet from SpaceX.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digitalization of Poland, Krzysztof Gawkowski, said that his country will continue to buy Starlink for Ukraine because it is «strategically important.» According to him, Poland spends $200 million a year on supporting satellite internet from SpaceX.
He stated this on the air of the Polish media outlet Radio ZET.
«We are buying Starlinki in order to provide the Internet in Ukraine, because it is strategically important. If there were no Ukrainian Internet, the Russians would defeat Ukraine», — said Krzysztof Gawkowski.
He said that Poland has already purchased 30,000 Starlink sets for Ukraine, and is currently in the process of purchasing another 5,000 sets. Gawkowski noted that Poland’s annual Starlink costs for Ukraine are about $200 million.
The first prepayment was in 2022, and the fourth year of financing has already begun. The purchases were made in tranches, and now «stocks are being replenished.»
According to the Polish Minister of Digitalization, without satellite Internet, «the Ukrainian front would collapse», — and the Russian army would be standing on the Polish border.
«Today, Ukraine is a partner that gives us a chance to ensure that there is no Russian army on our borders, and this is the most important thing today,» said Gavkovsky.
and Elon Musk once again speculated about the possible shutdown of Starlink for Ukraine in order to end the war faster. His statement provoked a reaction from Poland, which is funding satellite internet for Ukrainian defenders.
Initially, Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski responded to Musk’s statement, stating that Starlink for Ukraine is paid for by the Polish Ministry of Digitalization, and it costs almost $50 million per year. The SpaceX owner responded by advising him to shut up and calling him a «little man.»
Later, Elon Musk assured that he would never turn off Starlink terminals for Ukraine.
«To be absolutely clear: no matter how much I disagree with the policy on Ukraine, Starlink will never turn off its terminals. I’m just stating a fact: without Starlink, the Ukrainian front line would collapse, because the Russians can jam all other means of communication! We will never do this and we will never use it as a bargaining chip,» Musk wrote.
Recall that against the backdrop of talk of a possible shutdown of Starlink in Ukraine and the search for alternatives, shares of the Franco-British satellite group Eutelsat have more than tripled — it added more than 1 billion euros to its market capitalization.
