French satellite company negotiates to supply 40,000 Starlink replacement devices in Ukraine

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 US billionaire Elon Musk threatened to stop providing Starlink service in Ukraine if Kiev did not accept the terms of President Donald Trump's peace deal with Russia.

Eutelsat already operates 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 same number of Starlinks 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 recognizes the strategic importance of having a sovereign , secure and robust European satellite communications system," said Thomas Regnier, European Commission 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.

Regarding this issue, on March 5, Polish Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski announced 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.

As it turns out, 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,” Mr. Gawkowski said.

If billionaire Musk really cuts off Ukraine's Starlink access, 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