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SpaceX has hit out at the EU’s plan to restrict access to its satellite spectrum, saying the move risks poorer connectivity in Ukraine where its Starlink service has been critical to communications since Russia’s full-scale invasion.
In a document shared with European officials and seen by the FT, SpaceX said: “The proposal creates a significant likelihood that Europeans will be left without direct-to-device satellite services or that new European operations will create global interference problems, including to emergency services like those in Ukraine.”
The bloc in May proposed reserving part of its spectrum band that allows smartphones to connect directly to satellites for European players, thus limiting the frequencies for US and Chinese players.
Currently, the so-called 2GHz frequency band is used by two American companies, Viasat and EchoStar.
SpaceX argued the EU plan prioritises “an operator’s country of incorporation above economic, technical and regulatory realities”.
At the time the proposal was announced, the EU’s tech chief Henna Virkkunen defended the European preferences by arguing the bloc wanted to “boost our European capacities in this sector” while remaining open to international players in other parts of the spectrum band.
Others involved in the negotiation over the plan said that some EU officials deliberately wanted to limit Elon Musk’s Starlink platform.
The European proposal came after a warning shot from Washington.
In March, the US Federal Communications Commission cautioned that it would retaliate should the EU prioritise European satellite operators over options such as Starlink.
“We are concerned by some of the talk around European satellite sovereignty,” FCC chair Brendan Carr told the FT at the time. “If Europe is going to head down that path, then you know we will be compelled to take, you know, reciprocal action.”
The proposal by the European Commission still has to be negotiated with EU countries and the European parliament.
A person close to SpaceX said it still hoped to influence the direction of travel given the concerns that were raised by companies and several European governments.
