SES participates in replacement for Ukraine’s Starlink network

Thanks to its speed and reliability, Starlink – tech billionaire Elon Musk’s satellite network – has become an integral part of the war effort in Ukraine. In command posts set up in basements and hideouts, officers received a constant real-time stream of imagery used to direct artillery and drone strikes.

Starlink operates more than 7,000 satellites in low orbit about 550 kilometres above sea level. The satellites fly over every point on earth so quickly that constant access to the signals from the ground is possible.

The speed at which signals travel from Earth to space and back again is higher for Starlink devices than for competing services, which rely on fewer satellites in higher orbits, according to a background report by the AFP news agency. However, the difference is only fractions of a second, meaning that latency is only a problem for certain applications.

The Ukrainian armed forces also use Starlink because it is less susceptible to Russian jammers compared to conventional radio communications.

While many of Ukraine’s Starlink terminals are funded by Europe, strained ties between Washington and Kyiv have raised fears that the service could be disrupted.

European back-up system for Starlink

Replacing the ubiquitous laptop-sized devices that have become so vital to Ukraine’s defence against Russian attacks is now a major task. According to Ukraine’s Digital Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, more than 40,000 such terminals are in use in the military, hospitals, businesses and aid organisations.

The European heads of state and government once again backed Volodymyr Zelenskiy at their summit in Brussels and promised to significantly increase their own defence capacities.

Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov also spoke with his German counterpart Boris Pistorius in Berlin, including about efforts to set up a European back-up system for Starlink.

SES involved in talks

Four major satellite operators – Luxembourg’s SES, Spain’s Hisdesat, Viasat, owner of the UK’s Inmarsat, and France’s Eutelsat/OneWeb – have now confirmed to the Financial Times that they are in talks with governments and EU institutions on how to provide Ukraine with a back-up link.

Miguel Ángel García Primo, CEO of Spanish satellite service Hisdesat, is quoted as saying that his company has been contacted by several European officials and that Hisdesat is “part of this initiative”.

Luxembourg-based SES already offers services for Ukraine. CEO Adel Al-Saleh told the Financial Times that the company was also “involved in these discussions” about increasing capacity for the country.

While talks about an alternative have been ongoing for several months, recent events have “intensified” the discussions, Al-Saleh is quoted as saying. The Luxemburger Wort has asked SES for further clarification on this alliance.

In recent months, however, Starlink service has been patchy, especially in areas close to the frontline. “It’s been like this for a while now,” said a drone operator near the eastern Ukrainian stronghold of Pokrovsk, which Russian forces have been trying to capture since last year.

(This article was first published by the Luxemburger Wort. Translation, editing and additional reporting by Tracy Heindrichs)