Zelenskyy awards Elon Musk Ukraine’s Order of Freedom

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday signed a presidential decree awarding American tech billionnaire Elon Musk his country's Order of Freedom.

The decree, posted on the website of Ukraine's presidential office, awarded the state honor to the SpaceX CEO for his "outstanding personal services in protecting human life and freedom, and developing relations between the peoples of Ukraine and the United States of America."

Among those who have recently been awarded the state award include European Council President Antonio Costa, French President Emmanuel Macron, and British Prime Minister Andy Burnham.

SpaceX's Starlink services have helped Kyiv's military in communications and military actions since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war over four years ago.

In February, Ukraine said it adopted a resolution on the introduction of a "white list" for Starlink terminals, after which only verified and registered terminals would be able to operate in Ukraine.

"Everything else will be disconnected," then-Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said, noting the initiative, which will be implemented in coordination with SpaceX, was put forward in reaction to "the use of Starlink by the Russians."

Later that month, a senior Russian military official acknowledged that Starlink terminals have been disabled for the past two weeks, though this has not affected the intensity and effectiveness of its drone operations.

Zelenskyy told Ukrainian media over the weekend that he asked US President Donald Trump to help obtain permission from Musk to use Starlink over Russia for the purpose of his country's defense.

Citing the Ukrainian president, public broadcaster Suspilne reported that Musk said this could be a "major escalation." However, Zelenskyy was quoted as saying that negotiations on this issue are ongoing.