SpaceX has limited the Ukrainian military's ability to use Starlink satellite internet services to control drones in a conflict with Russia, said company president Gwynne Shotwell.
SpaceX is "very pleased to be able to provide connectivity to Ukraine," but the technology was "not intended to be weaponized," Shotwell said Wednesday at the 25th Conference in Washington. Speaking at the annual FAA Commercial Space Transportation Conference.
"The Ukrainians used [Starlink] in a way that was unintentional and not part of the agreement. As you know, we need to work on that with Starlink," she said.
Shotwell later revealed to journalists that he was talking about Kyiv's military relying on Starlink to control drones in surveillance and strike operations. As quoted by Reuters, "There are things we can do to limit their capabilities," she explained, referring to Ukraine's use of Starlink in its UAVs. There are things we can do and things we have done," Shotwell added, without specifying specific actions taken.