Starlink Refusing To Block Access To X In Brazil Unless Moraes Returns SpaceX Financial Assets Frozen By His Supreme Court Order

SpaceX Starlink has informed Brazil’s telecom regulator, Anatel, that it will not comply with authoritarian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes' order to block access to X in the country, via the Elon Musk's satellite internet service.

Moraes instructed all telecom providers in the Latin American nation to suspend services to X, after the social media platform rejected his demands to censor political opponents of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's left-wing government.

Meanwhile, a majority of a Supreme Court panel on Monday, voted 3-2 to uphold the X ban in Brazil. The court also approved the nearly $9,000 fine against anyone who uses X via VPN.

Brazilian authorities escalated the dispute over the weekend, when Moraes froze Starlink’s local financial assets, worth over $3 million, as part of an effort to collect fines against X.

Starlink petitioned the court to unblock its assets but the court dismissed the request. Musk called the account freeze "illegal," arguing that SpaceX and X are separate entities.

Responding to news Monday, of the seizure of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's plane by US authorities over sanctions violations, Musk joked: "Unless the Brazilian government returns the illegally seized property of X and SpaceX, we will seek reciprocal seizure of government assets too. Hope Lula enjoys flying commercial."

Starlink is popular in rural areas of Brazil and among Indigenous tribes in the Amazon, serving over 250,000 customers in the country. The satellite internet service is also vital to the nation's military operations.

Musk has pledged to continue providing free internet access to Starlink's Brazilian customers, while its accounts remain frozen.