Zelenskyy awards Musk Ukraine's highest state honor amid push for expanded Starlink use
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy awarded Elon Musk one of the country's highest state honors for protecting human life and freedom and strengthening Ukraine-U.S. ties — recognition for Starlink's role in battlefield communications, coming as Kyiv pushes to expand its use of the satellite network.
Elon Musk's relationship with Ukraine is back in the spotlight. Since Russia's invasion, SpaceX's Starlink has become a communications lifeline for Ukrainian forces and civilians — and now the country's president has thanked him for it directly.
President Zelenskyy said he awarded Musk the honor for his "outstanding personal merits" in protecting human life and freedom and strengthening ties between Ukraine and the United States.
The award comes as Ukraine seeks to expand its use of Starlink — including over Russian territory, where it wants to strike targets such as launchers for ballistic missiles hitting Ukrainian cities.
Zelenskyy said Musk had previously opposed such an expansion as a "major escalation" of the war, but that Ukraine had "started to receive a different, more encouraging feedback" more recently — suggesting the relationship may be shifting.
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