The highest honor for Elon Musk. Zelenski decided

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenski decided to grant Elon the Order of Freedom. This is the highest Ukrainian state award a citizen of another country can receive.

For my outstanding individual merit in protecting the lives and freedoms of people and developing relations between the peoples of Ukraine and the United States of America, I decide to honor the Order of Freedom of Elona Muska – entrepreneur, engineer and head of SpaceX and Tesla companies – informed the president of Ukraine.

Information on the honour of Musk is contained in a decree published by Zelenski on Wednesday.

A hard Relationship

One of the most crucial elements of Musk's activity related to the war in Ukraine is the Starlink system. Since the start of the Russian invasion in February 2022, Ukrainian troops and civilians have utilized satellite communications provided by him. The Kiev authorities have repeatedly pointed out the importance of Starlink for the functioning of Ukrainian communication infrastructure.

However, the awarding of the Order of Freedom to Musk can be seen as a turnaround in relations between a billionaire and Ukrainian authorities. In the past, Musk presented a position different from Kiev's policy towards war, and his statements on Zelenski were critical. Last year, after gathering the Ukrainian president with Donald Trump in Washington, D.C., Musk publically attacked Zelenski, judging that his behaviour seriously damaged his position in the eyes of the Americans.

"Financial Times" late reported that due to the deficiency of missiles intercepting Kiev, he was to request Musk's approval to usage the strategy during drone attacks aimed at Russian ballistic rocket launchers. The mark is as far as 200 km from the Ukrainian border.

Muska Technology in Russia

The problem is besides the usage of Starlink terminals by the Russian military. In early 2026, Ukrainian authorities reported that the Russians were increasingly installing equipment obtained or obtained in an unauthorized way on assault drones. This allows them to control machines at crucial distances, reduce the impact of radio-electronic interference and execute precise flights at low altitudes. SpaceX denied that it would cooperate with the Russian government, but any terminals would go to Russia through unofficial channels.

In February, the Ukrainian authorities straight asked Musk to assist in solving the problem. Specialists from Ukraine began working with SpaceX engineers to limit the anticipation of unauthorized usage of the network by the Russian military. The actions taken were intended to disrupt Russian communications at the front and to slow down offensive activities.