French communications satellite company Eutelsat Communications SA recently confirmed that as the United States reduces its support for Ukraine, the company is stepping up negotiations with the European Union on a project to replace SpaceX. On Thursday (March 6) local time, EutelSat CEO Eva Berneke said in an interview with the media, "Everyone is asking us this question today, and we are indeed considering this."
Berneke said the company is already working in Ukraine and currently has thousands of terminals there, but not all of them are connected to the network.
She added that the company was in talks with suppliers to provide military-grade and standard terminals and that it would take "several months" to deliver 40,000 terminals - about the number of Starlink terminals used in Ukraine.
EutelSat’s portable terminal Inster source: EutelSat official social media account
In the early days of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the Russian army's attack on the Ukrainian communication center once caused the Ukrainian army's command to malfunction. Musk’s SpaceX has provided Starlink services to Ukraine, helping Ukraine’s command and control system obtain communication capabilities and assisting Ukrainian drones in attacking Russian troops.
Many Starlink terminals in Ukraine are funded by Europe, and service fees are paid by countries such as Poland, but the deepening rift in U.S.-Ukrainian relations has raised concerns about possible disruptions to Starlink services.
It was previously reported that the Trump administration threatened to cut off Starlink services to Ukraine in order to pressure Ukraine to hand over mining rights to key mineral resources.
Berneke said Eutelsat needs financial and logistical support to rapidly increase the number of terminals in Ukraine.
European Commission spokesman Thomas Regnier also said, “The European Commission recognizes the strategic importance of sovereignty, security and strong European satellite connectivity” and discussions with the industry are ongoing.
Earlier this week, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she would write to EU member states on plans to rearm Europe. German Prime Minister-elect Mertz also said that Germany will strengthen its defense capabilities "at all costs."
Affected by these news, EutelSat rose sharply for three consecutive days, but fell back on Thursday.
However, compared with Starlink, Eutelsat's terminals are obviously lagging behind and cannot be as cheap as the former, nor are they as mobile.
Eutelsat's OneWeb network has more than 600 satellites in orbit at an altitude of 1,200 kilometers above the Earth. In comparison, Starlink's 7,000 satellites are lower, at 550 kilometers, they can provide faster connections and are more suitable for communications.
Hamish Low, a researcher at market research firm Enders Analysis, said it may take several years for Eutelsat to provide Ukraine's military and civilians with a connection comparable to what Starlink currently provides.