Officials in Ukraine have thanked tech billionaire Elon Musk after providing a literal truck full of Starlink terminals for the nation.
On Saturday, Ukraine's Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation appealed to Musk on Twitter, writing: "@elonmusk, while you try to colonize Mars — Russia try to occupy Ukraine!"
Mykhailo Fedorov added: "While your rockets successfully land from space — Russian rockets attack Ukrainian civil people! We ask you to provide Ukraine with Starlink stations and to address sane Russians to stand."
The 50-year-old Tesla CEO was quick to respond to the appeal, writing in a tweet that he has successfully provided Starlink service over Ukraine.
"Starlink service is now active in Ukraine. More terminals en route," Musk tweeted in reply.
In celebration of Musk's assistance, Federov said a follow-up tweet, in which he wrote: "Starlink terminals are coming to Ukraine! Thank you @elonmusk, thank you everyone, who supported Ukraine!"
Now, Fedorov has confirmed that the terminals have arrived - sharing a photo of a literal truck full of them to Twitter.
Alongside the image, he wrote: "Starlink — here. Thanks, @elonmusk".
"You are most welcome," replied Musk.
In a tweet shared by the official Kyiv Independent Twitter account, Ukraine's initial Starlink tests have been successful, with the outlet writing: "Ukraine conducts successful test of SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet system.
Speeds reached over 200 megabits per second. SpaceX CEO @elonmusk provided Ukraine with the system to make sure that Russian forces aren’t able to take down Ukraine’s internet connectivity."
As reported by The Independent, the ongoing conflict in Ukraine has left many civilians without an internet connection.
But Federov - as the Minister of Digital Transformation for Ukraine - hasn't stopped there. He has been utilizing his Twitter account to contact some of the biggest media companies in the world and call for their assistance.
In one tweet he called for YouTube to the Russian channel Russia24, describing it as the country's "main propaganda channel".
And in another tweet, he asked streaming giants Spotify to allow Ukrainian artists to "change their album covers" in an effort to "draw the attention to the bloody war in Ukraine".
In another tweet, Federov called on the technology company behind Instagram and Facebook, Meta, to take action.
Nick Clegg, the vice president of global affairs and communications at Facebook, has since released an article detailing Meta's ongoing efforts "regarding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine."
One measure the company has taken is to introduce "a special operations center" that is being "staffed by experts from across the company, including native Russian and Ukrainian speakers". The team will work "around the clock" to monitor and respond to issues "in real-time".
If you would like to know how you can support the Ukrainian people at this time, click HERE to find a list of organizations and groups dedicated to helping those affected by this crisis.
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