"Politico" quoted two U.S. officials involved in related discussions as saying on the 17th that the Pentagon is considering paying for the Starlink satellite network that has become Ukraine's lifeline. However, Musk, the CEO of SpaceX, which provides Starlink services and the world's richest man, responded to the news tweet that day, saying that SpaceX had withdrawn its application for funding.
Musk went on to tweet, "To be exact, 25,300 terminals were sent to Ukraine. But, right now, only 10,630 are paying for the service."
CNN asked the U.S. Department of Defense about the matter, and two people familiar with the matter said that before Musk’s apparent change of mind, the Pentagon had actually agreed to SpaceX’s request as of the 14th to pay for the ongoing service newly requested by the Ukrainian government and the Ukrainian military commander-in-chief.
SpaceX reportedly made a funding request of $124 million for the remainder of 2022, but it was unclear how much or what terms it was ultimately agreed.
