US negotiators who press Kiev to gain access to critical minerals have raised the possibility of cutting the country’s access to Elon Musk’s Vital Internet Satellite system, three sources familiar with the subject told Reuters.
Ukraine’s continuous access to Starlink, owned by Spacex, was raised in discussions between US and Ukrainian authorities after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy declined an initial proposal from US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, said sources .
Starlink provides crucial internet connectivity to Ukraine devastated by war and its military.
The issue was raised again on Thursday during meetings between Keith Kellogg, the US special envoy to Ukraine, and Zelenskiy, said one of the sources, who was informed about conversations.
During the meeting, Ukraine was informed that it would face the impending cut of the service if it did not reach an agreement on critical minerals, the source said anonymous to discuss closed negotiations.
“Ukraine works with Starlink. They consider it her northern star, ”the source said. “Losing Starlink (…) would be a big blow.”
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Zelenskiy rejected President Donald Trump’s government demands for $ 500 billion in Ukraine’s mineral wealth to pay Washington for help in war times, saying the US has not offered specific security guarantees.
On Friday, the Ukrainian President said the US and Ukraine teams were working on an agreement and Trump said he expects a signed hit soon.
Musk hurriedly sent thousands of Starlink terminals to Ukraine to replace communication services destroyed by Russia after its invasion in February 2022. Acclaimed as a hero in Ukraine, musk later restricted access at least once in the fall of 2022 when It became more critical of the way Kiev dealt with the war.
