Some governments have asked Starlink to block Russian news sources, the company's founder and CEO Elon Musk has said. "We will not do so unless at 'gunpoint'", sorry to be a free speech absolutist", the entrepreneur wrote. He did not name which countries have approached Starlink, only mentioning that the request did not come from the Ukrainian authorities.
Musk is an avid supporter of free speech and has repeatedly found himself in hot water over his stance. In January, he was criticised for supporting demonstrators in Canada, who staged a massive protest in the capital Ottawa over the authorities' decision to introduce vaccine mandates for cross-border truck drivers.
Musk also said Starlink had reprioritised cyberdefence and overcoming signal jamming, which will cause slight delays in the implementation of the second part of the Starlink project. The company planned to launch satellites into low-Earth orbit using its next-generation rocket, Starship. SpaceX said Starship will dramatically reduce the cost of space launches and will be used in flights to the Moon and Mars.
Last week, Starlink sent internet terminals to Ukraine for the country to have access to the World Wide Web. The decision came amid Russia's decision to begin a special operation in Ukraine, which President Vladimir Putin said is aimed at denazifying and demilitarising Kiev, as well as protecting the residents of two breakaway regions – the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics.
The move has sparked unprecedented tensions between Moscow and the West, with the latter condemning Russia's actions, calling it an "invasion". Western nations slapped sanctions on Russia and blocked the nation's news outlets. Thus, the European Union has blocked Russia Today (RT) and Sputnik in the bloc, while Google, Instagram, Twitter, and Meta (previously known as Facebook) announced that they would block the outlets' channels on its platforms.