Starlink a wolf in sheep's clothing, says think-tank

PTI New Delhi: Amid talk of Elon Musk's Starlink seeking to offer satellite broadband internet service in India, think tank Kutniti Foundation has highlighted the US giant's deep ties with US intelligence and military agencies that could impede national interests. Calling Starlink "a wolf in sheep's clothing", the foundation said Starlink is a dual-use technology with "its biggest customer and promoter being the American government intelligence and military." While legacy mobile phone service providers use telecom towers for offering voice and internet services, satellite communication or satcom involves using a constellation of satellites to offer the same.

However, there are concerns that the control of those satellites lies outside the country. "Starlink constellation of satellites is a new form of internet service providers across the world, unbound by geographic demarcations and natural boundaries. A direct access to every citizen in the world, with no governance structure in between the user and the American one," Kutniti said in a report. On Tuesday, India’s Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia had stated that Starlink was yet to comply with security norms and a licence for satellite broadband services will be issued only after they meet all the requirements for services in India. An email sent to Starlink seeking comments on Kutniti report remained unanswered. Musk, whose space company SpaceX is said to be building a network of hundreds of spy satellites under a classified contract with a US intelligence agency, had clashed with the Biden administration over the use of Starlink satellite connectivity in the Ukraine war.

The billionaire, who had openly supported Donald Trump over Biden's party colleague Kamala Harris in the just concluded US presidential election, had last year stated that he refused a Ukrainian request to activate his Starlink satellite network to aid an attack on the Russian fleet.