U.S. Allies Surprised by Musk's Change of Heart... Competition for Satellite Independence to 'Escape Starlink'

U.S. Allies Surprised by Musk's Change of Heart... Competition for Satellite Independence to 'Escape Starlink'

Criticism of "political use of product"... Europe and Canada accelerate independent satellite network construction

Starlink's overwhelming superiority with 11,000 satellites... Unlikely to be replaced in the short term

Following the incident where Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX, suddenly restricted the Ukrainian military's use of satellite communication services, U.S. allies such as Europe and Canada are accelerating the establishment of their own satellite communication networks.

As the situation where communication networks essential for military operations are restricted by the decision of a single private company became a reality, the sense of crisis grew that reliance on a specific company could become a vulnerability to national security.

The U.S. daily Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 24th (local time) that such movements are spreading, and concerns about dependence on Starlink are growing in Europe.

Radosław Sikorski, Poland's foreign minister, criticized Musk, saying, "The more you use a product politically, the more damage you do to the brand."

Concerns also emerged within the U.S. Republican Party. Senator Kevin Cramer pointed out, "(The U.S.) should not rely too heavily on one system, one person, one company."

Previously, speed limits were imposed on Starshield, the military Starlink used by the Ukrainian military for communication and drone operations, causing disruptions in the operation of some attack and interceptor drones.

The WSJ reported that Musk directly ordered the speed restrictions. The Ukrainian side suspects that the conflict between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky over attacks on Russian oil refineries is the background to this measure.

Consequently, various countries are rushing to secure independent satellite networks.

Ukraine and Finland announced a support package worth 300 million euros (approximately 500 billion KRW) on the 22nd, stating that Ukraine plans to participate in the construction of a satellite communication network being pursued by Finnish satellite company Iceye and communication equipment company Nokia. The first satellite launch is scheduled for 2028.

Canada's Telesat is also pursuing the construction of 'Lightspeed,' a low-earth orbit communication network consisting of 288 satellites. The goal is to launch the first satellite this December and begin services in early 2028.

The European Union (EU) plans to invest approximately 17.5 billion dollars (approximately 25 trillion KRW) to build its own communication network, 'IRIS²', consisting of 348 satellites. The first launch is scheduled for 2029.

However, replacing Starlink in the short term is a difficult situation.

While Starlink operates over 11,000 satellites, OneWeb, a leading European low-earth orbit satellite communication company, only has approximately 650.

Furthermore, even competitors like OneWeb and Telesat rely on SpaceX's Falcon rockets for satellite launches.

Tom Withington, a researcher at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) in the UK, predicted that "there will be no single technology to replace Starlink," and that combining various technologies would take a considerable amount of time.