Elon Musk’s Starlink is also providing free broadband internet access to its users in Venezuela until February 3, after U.S. airstrikes and the seizure of ousted leader Nicolás Maduro.
In a statement released on Sunday, the satellite internet provider announced that it would proactively add service credits to both active and inactive accounts, as it monitored changing circumstances and regulatory requirements.
It reported that “While we do [not yet have] a timeline for local purchase availability, if and when there are updates, they will be communicated directly through official Starlink channels.”
Starlink, a subsidiary of the aerospace company SpaceX, provides internet services using low-earth-orbit satellites and requires users to purchase specific equipment to access the service.
According to the availability map displayed on the Starlink website, Venezuela is listed as “available soon,” which indicates that the company has not officially introduced its service in the country, although it stated that some users were already active.
An overload of free internet access in the nation would assist in offering connectivity during the aftermath of recent U.S. airstrikes and a ground raid to confine and extradite Maduro to face charges of narco-terrorism and election rigging, among other charges.
According to a government statement, Washington’s operations mostly hit the Venezuelan capital of Caracas on January 3, with the states of Miranda, Aragua, and La Guaira also being attacked.
Therefore, after the airstrikes, it was reported that regions of Caracas had been left without power and internet. It also had outages in part of Miranda over the weekend, as stated by some local outlets.
U.S. President Donald Trump has said that the U.S. would oversee the process of transition in Venezuela, but the circumstances remained unclear, with the fear of a power vacuum.
The president also announced on Saturday that Vice President Delcy Rodriguez was sworn in following the arrest of Maduro, though he threatened to strike the second blow on Venezuela if the leadership didn’t “behave.”
However, the U.N. Security Council will hold a meeting on January 6 to deliberate on the legality of the U.S. action because the countries, including allies of the U.S. like Brazil and Spain, have denounced the military actions.
Venezuela is not the first conflict area where Starlink has been deployed. In another comparable case involving Ukraine, the satellite service was deployed to substitute internet and communication networks that were destroyed by the invasion of Russia.
Although Starlink had initially been offering internet services in Ukraine at a personal cost, its services are now being funded under an agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense since June 2023. Starlink never revealed the number of its users in Venezuela or the price of service delivery.
