French satellite service provider Eutelsat is in talks with the European Union (EU) to replace Starlink as the main platform for Ukraine's military communications.
A Starlink satellite internet signal transmitting antenna donated by Mr. Musk to the Ukrainian army - Photo: AFP
This information was quoted by The Guardian newspaper as saying by the company's CEO, Ms. Eva Berneke, on March 6.
The issue became urgent after several media sources said that American billionaire Elon Musk threatened to stop providing Starlink services in Ukraine if Kiev did not accept the terms of President Donald Trump's peace deal with Russia.
Eutelsat is already operating in Ukraine and currently has thousands of terminals, although not all are connected, Berneke noted. She said discussions with the provider are ongoing and it would take several months to deploy 40,000 terminals, the number of Starlink terminals currently in use in Ukraine.
Ms Berneke stressed that Eutelsat will need financial and logistical support to rapidly increase the number of terminals in Ukraine.
"The European Commission recognises the strategic importance of having a sovereign, secure and robust European satellite communications system," said Thomas Regnier, the European Commission's representative.
Earlier on February 22, Reuters quoted three senior officials as saying that US negotiators were considering the possibility of disconnecting Ukraine from the Starlink system if Kiev did not agree to Washington's terms regarding access to Ukraine's mineral resources.
In this regard, on March 5, Polish Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski stated that canceling Ukraine's access to the Starlink satellite Internet network would lead to a crisis between Warsaw and Washington.
The Kyiv Independent newspaper of Ukraine reported on March 5 that since Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine, Poland has not only helped Ukraine maintain access to the Starlink satellite Internet network, but also provided half of the total number of terminals, up to more than 20,000 devices.
In fact, during the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Starlink satellite internet played an important role in Ukraine's civil and military communications infrastructure.
Cancelling Poland's Starlink contracts, which provide internet access to Ukraine, would be “a major crisis in international relations,” Polish Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski warned.
“I cannot imagine a situation where a business relationship between Poland and an American company would suddenly be interrupted,” said Mr. Gawkowski.
If billionaire Musk really cuts off Ukraine's access to Starlink, Poland's deputy prime minister said that would mean unilaterally terminating a contract with an EU country.
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/hang-ve-tinh-phap-dam-phan-cung-cap-40-000-thiet-bi-thay-the-starlink-tai-ukraine-20250308061319415.htm
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