The EU should fund access to space services “upon demand of the Ukrainian armed forces”, the Commission’s draft white paper on the future of European defence says.
EU governments and institutions have reached out to four European satellite connectivity companies to explore alternatives to Starlink in Ukraine. This comes amid concerns that Starlink’s owner, Elon Musk, might shut down the service, which the Ukrainian army relies on for military communication and operating attack drones on the frontline.
The Commission’s draft white paper on defence, seen by Euractiv, specifies that the EU should fund access to space services “that can be provided by EU-based commercial providers.”
French company Eutelsat is currently the only European provider with a low-Earth orbit satellite constellation, offering connectivity similar to Starlink.
Its system allows communication signals to be received on small, easily concealable devices while ensuring minimal signal delay due to the low orbit of its satellites – two characteristics that are essential for military use.
In early March, Eutelsat’s CEO stated that the company could replace Starlink in Ukraine within “a couple of months.” However, the company faces manufacturing bottlenecks in scaling up production.
While Starlink has around 40,000 terminals operating in Ukraine, Eutelsat currently has about 2,000 deployed in the war-torn country, with 4,000 more ready for deployment. The company has also placed an order for an additional 10,000 terminals to expand its capacity.
But not all 40,000 Starlink terminals are used by the Ukrainian military. Some are used to provide internet access to the general population amid intense Russian attacks on telecommunications infrastructure.
These connections could be replaced by alternative suppliers that use geostationary orbit (GEO) satellite constellations for communication. While GEO satellites require much larger antennas on the receiver end and have higher latency compared to low-Earth orbit systems, they can still provide coverage for civilian communications.
Spanish company Hispasat and Luxembourg-based SES both operate GEO satellites capable of delivering these services.
Additionally, Ukraine should be partially associated to the EU space programme, the Commission’s draft reads.
The EU should also cooperate with Ukraine on the protection of space assets from cyberattacks, adds the Commission.
The war waged by Russia in Ukraine was prefaced by a cyberattack on American Viasat satellites, of which Ukraine was a client – an hour before Russian soldiers invaded Ukrainian territory.
[OM]