The Pentagon said to be looking for the possibility of further operation of the Starlink communications system in Ukraine.

This is stated on the website of the Pentagon.

At the same time, representatives of the U.S. Department of Defense are hinting that they are ready to cooperate with other companies that provide satellite communications.

This happens after Elon Musk’s SpeceX asked the US Department of Defense to take over funding the Starlink services. They assured that with or without Elon Musk, there will still be satellite communication in Ukraine.

“We [the US Department of Defense – Ed.] certainly recognize the advantages that any satcom [satellite communications] capability has that allows the Ukrainians to use not just on the battlefield, but within the country itself.

We understand the fragility in those communications, and it’s important that not just command and control may remain intact on the battlefield but throughout [the country]. We’re assessing our options and trying to do what we can to help keep these, these satcoms remain for the Ukrainian forces. I’m not going to reveal right now what it is or who we’re talking to. But we know there are other companies, not just SpaceX, that we can certainly work with when it comes to providing Ukraine with what it needs on the battlefield” said Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh.

SpaceX claims their services will cost $124 million and $400 million in 2023 by the end of 2022. The company claims to have spent nearly $100 million of its own funds.

In the documents reviewed by CNN, there is information that 85% of the 20,000 terminals currently operating in Ukraine were paid by the United States, Great Britain and Poland. They also paid about 30% of subscription traffic.

Most users in Ukraine are subscribed to a tariff of $60/month. SpaceX instead claims to give everyone access at a tariff level of $4,500/month. Therefore, the company believes that payment for traffic is only 1.3% of the amount for actually provided services.

Politico reports that the Pentagon is speaking to other satellite communications companies following a report that SpaceX can no longer financially support Starlink terminals in Ukraine, which the country has said is critical for battlefield communications.

SpaceX turned to the Pentagon after receiving a new request from Valerii Zaluzhnyi, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. He said that now 4,000 terminals are operating at the same time for defense needs. However, about 500 devices are lost every month in battles. The Ukrainian general asked Elon Musk for another 8,000 terminals.

It is noteworthy that after this correspondence, the founder of SpaceX on October 3 announced his scandalous “peace plan” for Ukraine, which essentially provides for the legitimization of the loss of 5 Ukrainian regions and the neutral status of Ukraine.