Congressman Mike Gallagher, who led a delegation to Taiwan this week, said in a letter to Musk that SpaceX may be in violation of its “contractual obligations with the U.S. government.” .
by david jeansForbes staff
aA group of U.S. lawmakers is calling on Elon Musk to make SpaceX’s StarShield military satellite communications network available to the U.S. military in Taiwan, after years of refusing to do business there.
In a letter to Musk obtained by forbes, Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) reminded the billionaire of SpaceX’s contractual obligation to provide the U.S. Department of Defense with “global access” to satellite internet services. He noted that the Pentagon will spend “tens of millions of dollars” over the next year on StarShield, which uses low-Earth orbit satellites to provide communications and observation imagery to the military. “We understand that SpaceX may be withholding broadband internet service in and around Taiwan,” said Gallagher, chairman of the Chinese Communist Party Special Committee. may be in breach of their contractual obligations,” Gallagher, who chairs the Chinese Communist Party’s Special Committee, said in a February letter. twenty four.
“A robust communications network for U.S. military personnel in and around Taiwan is paramount to protecting U.S. interests in the Indo-Pacific region,” Gallagher said, adding that if China were to invade Taiwan, “U.S. military personnel in the Western Pacific will be at significant risk.” The letter also asks Musk to provide a special notice by March 8 regarding the availability of StarShield in and around Taiwan. We are asking the committee to explain.
This request is sure to make Musk uncomfortable. He has close ties to China, where Tesla has a major manufacturing facility, and has openly weighed in on tensions with autonomous Taiwan, which the country considers part of its territory. In 2022, Musk suggested that tensions between Taipei and China could be resolved if part of Taiwan’s governance was transferred to China.
The letter also highlights the uneasy dependence of the U.S. government and military on SpaceX’s satellites. The Texas-based company has launched more than 5,000 satellites since 2019 and is the world’s leading vendor of satellite communications. This is often the only way to access the internet in remote areas, places devastated by natural disasters or conflict zones. The mission has become crucial for Ukraine’s military as it fights the Russian invasion, which is in its second year. However, there are many problems here as well. Ukrainian military intelligence officials recently claimed that Russian forces in the country also use Starlink satellite internet terminals, undermining a key advantage on the battlefield. Musk has denied selling Starlink services to Russia.
“U.S. military personnel in the Western Pacific will be at serious risk.”
Mr Gallagher traveled to Taiwan this week with a delegation of parliamentarians to meet with officials, including President Tsai Ing-wen, and discuss the need for systems like StarShield to back up communications if China cuts the connecting undersea cable. We discussed sex. it to the rest of the world. In his letter, Gallagher said “multiple sources” have revealed to the Chinese Communist Party Committee that Starshield is currently inactive in and around Taiwan.
said Jason Hsu, a former member of Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan and current fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School. forbes He said he was also discussing the issue with members of Congress. “We are petitioning the Pentagon through Congress to make this a priority for the next Congress,” he said. “Taiwan must prioritize satellite capabilities as its submarine cable infrastructure is at risk.”
SpaceX did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.
The issue has become more urgent as the Pentagon focuses on Taiwan’s future and the growing threat of a possible Chinese invasion of the island. Last February, Taiwan’s National Communications Commission accused a Chinese ship of cutting two undersea internet cables. That same month, CIA Director William Burns said President Xi Xingping had ordered the People’s Liberation Army to prepare for an invasion of Taiwan by 2027. China has also stepped up its military demonstrations since the election of pro-independence President Lai Kiyotoku last month, and experts are warning of further cyberattacks.
When Taiwan first began talks with SpaceX about StarLink in 2019, officials hoped to ensure communications did not rely on undersea cables. However, negotiations quickly broke down over the requirement that the government own a majority stake in telecommunications companies operating in the country. Musk has insisted on retaining full ownership of the Starlink operations in Taiwan and requested a waiver or modification of the requirement. Since then, negotiations have stalled and Taiwan has begun developing its own satellite system.
“One thing we cannot tolerate is the continued slowness of the U.S. government and those in industry.”
Starlink is the obvious solution to Taiwan’s communications vulnerabilities, but some believe it’s much more than that. “Starlink and StarShield can play an important role, but we don’t want there to be a specific point of failure in satellite communications,” said former Congressman Will Hurd. forbes. “I was on this island nine months ago. The Taiwanese clearly understand this threat, and the continued slowness of the U.S. government and those in industry is one thing we cannot tolerate.”
Taiwan remains wary of Musk’s deep business ties with China, and has been angered by his pro-China comments. About 20% of Tesla’s revenue comes from China, and more than half of its vehicles were built in 2022 at a giant factory in Shanghai. When Mr. Musk said last September that Taiwan was an “integral part of China,” Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Joseph Wu said: publicly reprimanded him “Listen…Taiwan is not part of the People’s Republic of China and certainly not for sale!”
It is unlikely that the mercurial Mr. Musk will be intimidated by pressure from lawmakers to activate the star shield in Taiwan. And he has in the past restricted access to Starlink in disputed areas of Ukraine. Said He does not want to be “explicitly complicit in serious acts of war or escalation of conflict.” But given the importance of SpaceX’s military contracts with the U.S. government, he may have to make a choice in Taiwan.
“I think [China’s] The goal is clear: to reunify Taiwan and the mainland, by force if necessary,” Gallagher told reporters during a conference call Friday. “This story should make us even more concerned about specific reports that SpaceX and StarShield are not providing services to Taiwan.”
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