This article was originally published by Tyler Durden at ZeroHedge. 

Update(1640ET): Amid the continuing controversy over Elon Musk has previously made the decision to block Kiev from utilizing Starlink satellites to attack Crimea, Zelensky’s office has lashed out in what we might call a “bite the hand that feeds you” moment.

Musk “committed” and “enabled evil” by denying the ability of Kiev to launch massive drone attacks on Crimea last year, Mikhail Podoliak, a senior aide to President Zelensky said Friday. Somewhat ironically, he wrote this charge on the Musk-owned platform X. Here’s what he said, framing the most hard-hitting lines suggesting Musk is doing “evil”… awkwardly in the form of a question (likely fearing Musk could at any time switch off Ukraine’s Starlink comms altogether):

“Sometimes a mistake is much more than just a mistake,” Podoliak wrote. “By not allowing Ukrainian drones to destroy part of the Russian military (!) fleet via Starlink interference, Elon Musk allowed this fleet to fire Kalibr missiles at Ukrainian cities.”

“As a result, civilians, children are being killed. This is the price of a cocktail of ignorance and big ego. However, the question still remains: why do some people so desperately want to defend war criminals and their desire to commit murder? And do they now realize that they are committing evil and encouraging evil?”

Sometimes a mistake is much more than just a mistake. By not allowing Ukrainian drones to destroy part of the Russian military (!) fleet via #Starlink interference, @elonmusk allowed this fleet to fire Kalibr missiles at Ukrainian cities. As a result, civilians, children are…

— Михайло Подоляк (@Podolyak_M) September 7, 2023

To recount, Musk has pointed out amid an avalanche of mainstream media “outrage” that—

“The obvious intent being to sink most of the Russian fleet at anchor,” he wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“If I had agreed to their request, then SpaceX would be explicitly complicit in a major act of war and conflict escalation.”

But to Zelensky and his aides, this is “evil” apparently. We wonder what’s next in this saga. Some online are going so far as to call for the US government to “nationalize” SpaceX’s systems which pertain to Ukraine…

This guy's assets, the ones pertaining to national security, should be nationalized. When the balloon goes up in the PACOM AOR we can't have this idiot's thumb on the scales for the enemy. https://t.co/otQTChm4PT

— Jack Murphy (@JackMurphyRGR) September 8, 2023

* * *

Since Elon Musk has apparently become Donald Trump – in that any lie/twist/gaslighting will do to further the narrative, no matter how false it is known to be – last night saw the mainstream media overwhelmed with circle-jerk-justified accusations that Musk meddled in the Ukraine-Russia war to stop a Zelenskyy-driven offensive (that likely would have turned the war and hailed victory ticker-tape parades up and down Kiev’s streets).

Ok, admittedly that last bit was out hyperbole; but given a quick read of headlines from CNN and NBC, we could be forgiven for this view.

Elon Musk secretly ordered his engineers to turn off his company’s Starlink satellite communications network near the Crimean coast last year to disrupt a Ukrainian sneak attack on the Russian naval fleet, according to an excerpt adapted from Walter Isaacson’s new biography of the eccentric billionaire titled “Elon Musk.”

As Ukrainian submarine drones strapped with explosives approached the Russian fleet, they “lost connectivity and washed ashore harmlessly,” Isaacson writes.

NBC led with the following headline: Ukraine is furious with Elon Musk for thwarting an attack on Russia’s navy

Tech billionaire Elon Musk has come under fire from Ukraine after it emerged he thwarted a major attack on the Russian navy.

According to excerpts published by CNN, a soon-to-be-released biography of the SpaceX CEO claims that Musk secretly ordered his engineers to turn off his Starlink satellite network over Russian-occupied Crimea last year in order to prevent a Ukrainian drone attack on Russia’s naval fleet.

Elon Musk last year secretly ordered SpaceX engineers to switch off the Starlink satellite communications network near the Crimean coast in order to thwart a Ukrainian surprise attack on Russia’s naval fleet, according to Walter Isaacson’s upcoming Musk biography. pic.twitter.com/uPto8hm1pW

— The Recount (@therecount) September 7, 2023

The mainstream media did not have to look too far to find someone willing to denigrate Musk:

Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, blasted the tech billionaire on X, formerly Twitter, which Musk owns.

“Sometimes a mistake is much more than just a mistake,” Podolyak wrote.

“By not allowing Ukrainian drones to destroy part of the Russian military (!) fleet via #Starlink interference, @elonmusk allowed this fleet to fire Kalibr missiles at Ukrainian cities,” he added.

“As a result, civilians, children are being killed,” Podolyak said.

“This is the price of a cocktail of ignorance and big ego. However, the question still remains: why do some people so desperately want to defend war criminals and their desire to commit murder? And do they now realize that they are committing evil and encouraging evil?”

Isaacson quotes Musk at the time as questioning “How am I in this war?”

“Starlink was not meant to be involved in wars. It was so people can watch Netflix and chill and get online for school and do good peaceful things, not drone strikes.”

A couple of quick questions – how would Musk know – pre-emptively – of the attack, and choose to disable Starlink? Is his intel better than Putin’s; better than the CIA’s?

The spin here is utterly mind-blowing.

In fact, according to Musk – who responded to the accusations on X, the details are the exact opposite to how CNN described them…

In fact, Musk NEVER turned Starlink on in those controversial border zones – for exactly this reason, as he feared using this technology near borders could prompt an escalation in the war.

The Starlink regions in question were not activated. SpaceX did not deactivate anything.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 7, 2023

In fact, Musk did not ‘turn Starlink off’ but refused to ‘turn Starlink on’ for Ukraine’s offensive.

There was an emergency request from government authorities to activate Starlink all the way to Sevastopol.

The obvious intent being to sink most of the Russian fleet at anchor.

If I had agreed to their request, then SpaceX would be explicitly complicit in a major act of war and…

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 7, 2023

Which makes more sense to you – the richest man in the world unilaterally switching off internet access to pre-emptively thwart a secret attack by Ukraine on Russia in a Blofeld-esque move? Or the CEO of a major communications company refusing to enable his technology to be used to escalate a war that could well lead to armageddon?

Both sides should agree to a truce.

Every day that passes, more Ukrainian and Russian youth die to gain and lose small pieces of land, with borders barely changing. This is not worth their lives.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 7, 2023