Deputy PM: Poland funds Ukraine’s Starlink internet for four years totaling $200 million Key to Ukraine’s Resilience

Poland has been funding Ukraine’s access to Starlink satellite internet systems for the past four years, spending approximately $200 million on the initiative, Polish Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski has revealed.

Gawkowski said Poland had purchased around 30,000 Starlink units for Ukraine and was in the process of acquiring an additional 5,000 for both military and civilian use, Caliber.Az reports via Polish media.

The annual cost of the programme is estimated at around 200 million złoty (£40 million).

“We buy Starlinks to secure Ukraine’s internet access because it is strategically important. If Ukraine were to lose its internet, Russia would defeat Ukraine,” he said.

Starlink, a satellite internet service operated by Elon Musk’s SpaceX, plays a crucial role in maintaining Ukraine’s defence capabilities amid Russia’s invasion. Musk has previously claimed that the front line in Ukraine would collapse without Starlink access.

Poland began financing the systems in 2022 and has now entered its fourth year of funding, with total expenditure reaching approximately 770 million złoty.

When asked whether Ukraine had given Poland anything in return for its support, Gawkowski responded: “Ukraine is a partner, and it ensures that there is no Russian army at Poland’s borders—that is the most important thing.”

In October last year, Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski confirmed that Poland was covering the costs of Ukraine’s Starlink terminals.

“These Starlink modules used in Ukraine are not sponsored by Mr Elon Musk but are and will continue to be funded exclusively by Poland. We are doing this, and no one else is,” Sikorski told journalists.

By Aghakazim Guliyev