Background

Author Walter Isaacson recently faced criticism after an excerpt from his upcoming book, “Elon Musk,” described how Musk allegedly disrupted a Ukrainian military initiative by shutting off Starlink’s satellite network over Crimea. Musk, known for being the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, reportedly made this decision to prevent a potential nuclear war with Russia. Isaacson took to social media to clarify the situation.

The Controversial Excerpt

In the book excerpt, Isaacson claims that Musk ordered engineers to disable Starlink’s coverage over Crimea during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Musk later expressed that Starlink’s involvement in wars was not intended. He believed that enabling coverage for the Ukrainian attack on Russian warships could lead to dire consequences.

Isaacson’s Clarification

On social media, Isaacson provided additional details regarding the Starlink issue. He explained that although Ukrainians believed Starlink coverage extended to Crimea, it was not actually enabled. They specifically requested Musk to enable it for their drone submarine attack on the Russian fleet, but Musk declined due to concerns about triggering a major war.

The Situation in Crimea

Crimea, a peninsula on the Black Sea, was annexed by Russia from Ukraine in 2014. Following Russia’s invasion in February 2022, the Russian Black Sea fleet launched missile attacks on Ukrainian coastal cities and imposed a naval blockade.

Reaction from Ukraine

A top aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticized Musk for not allowing Ukrainian drones to interfere with the Russian fleet using Starlink. The aide argued that Musk’s decision led to attacks on Ukrainian cities, resulting in civilian casualties.

Book Release

Isaacson’s complete book, containing further details, is set to be released on Tuesday.