Taiwan seeks satellite back-up as Musk comments raise concerns

TAIWAN is exploring a back-up satellite communication network to be used in the event of a Chinese invasion, amid concerns that it could not rely on Elon Musk’s Starlink.

The invasion of Ukraine earlier this year added urgency to Taiwanese contingency plans for a reliable emergency communications system that could help it survive a crisis if conventional connectivity methods fail.

And while Starlink would be an obvious solution, industry experts say Mr Musk’s recent geopolitical commentary has sparked alarm in Taipei.

In an interview with the Financial Times this month, the billionaire, who has significant business interests in China, suggested Taiwan could become a Chinese “special administrative zone”.

Starlink, created by Mr Musk’s SpaceX company, has been a vital asset to Ukraine’s military since last spring, but he recently told the Pentagon he might be forced to pull the network if the US does contribute financially.

He also angered Volodymyr Zelensky by weighing in on Twitter with an unsolicited Russia-Ukraine peace plan.

“Musk’s recent words are not very encouraging,” said Kitsch Liao, a military and cyber consultant for Doublethink Lab, a Taiwan civil society group.

He said it reflected a wider problem in which commercial satellite companies may face economic coercion. “This is a very different situation than Russia. China has pressure points everywhere,” he added.

Chiu Kuo-cheng, Taiwan’s defence minister, has previously warned command and communications lines would be targeted first in the event of an invasion by China, which claims the island nation as its own.

Taiwan is set to launch a bidding process on Nov 8 for pilot projects using non-geostationary satellites which circle at relatively low orbits.

A budget of £14.8million has been allocated for 2023-24 for a system to give emergency back-up for fixed and mobile ground reception at 700 domestic and three foreign sites. Both foreign and local service providers may apply.