The Finnish companies ICEYE [European leader in sovereign space intelligence] and Nokia [one of the global leaders in communication infrastructure] signed a letter of intent with the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine for collaboration in space.
First and foremost, it is about creating their own sovereign satellite communication.
Earlier this month, ICEYE (those who leased satellites equipped with synthetic aperture radars to us) and Nokia announced a partnership. The companies will jointly develop secure, sovereign, and high-performance broadband satellite communication systems in low Earth orbit. The systems will be built on already proven European technologies. European states will own the satellites, ground infrastructure, and terminals and will control them themselves.
ICEYE co-founder and CEO Rafal Modrzewski stated:
“Ukraine needs secure, sovereign, and high-performance satellite communication systems that it can control itself. We have already demonstrated that we can quickly implement sovereign missions and help create such capabilities. ICEYE is proud to support Ukraine since 2022, and we will continue this support.”
Nokia’s Director of Geopolitics and Government Affairs Mikko Hautala said:
“States need communication they can rely on in any situation. When ground networks fail, satellite networks uphold and protect communication. Therefore, they are a key part of any secure communication system. Together with Ukraine and ICEYE, within this letter of intent, we will explore how reliable sovereign satellite communication can strengthen Ukraine’s resilience and provide control over the communication it depends on.”
What is interesting about this news? It’s the first time that a general opinion on Starlink and Musk has surfaced publicly.
I periodically communicate with representatives of the Western defense sector, and after Musk’s antics, a strategic rule was formed there—do not rely on Starlink. Do everything not to be dependent on it, purely based on the Ukrainian experience. In Europe, it is now considered that SpaceX is an unreliable company.
All these topics where America currently dominates are gradually being developed in Europe with a strategic vision to transition to these assets later, to avoid future dependence on America.
And despite all statements from the USA that Europe should be independent, this does not please American weapon manufacturers. Because they thought it would be the same as before, they would produce weapons for the whole world, and Europe would buy them. But it turned out that the status of a weapons monopolist goes hand in hand with the status of a global policeman, and when the USA decided to be a regional leader and blackmail with their weapons, many immediately lost the desire to be long-term dependent on American weapons.
There were purely monopoly directions, and everyone before Trump considered it normal.
Now Europe is developing projects that are analogous to Starlink, but with consideration of the combat experience of this war. They are developing reusable rockets, including small rockets, to massively launch satellites into orbit. They are developing anti-air systems that can shoot down ballistic missiles (which makes Americans nervous because they realize they are losing a big market). And European fighters are getting a second chance at development (which is why Ukraine is targeting Gripens).
Yes, it’s a slow process, and America, having both its own market for development and sale of means, and the European one, succeeded more massively and successfully. Europe will not have the American market, only its own. But the gradual loss of the European weapons and technology market is already a basic topic. And this has begun to be spoken about openly.
I once asked a friend who works in the defense sector in Europe:
– Will you be able to catch up with such a technological monster as the USA?
– Well, once it was believed that Boeing was ahead of the entire planet. And now Airbus is swamped with orders, and Trump even goes to China and begs Xi to buy 200 more Boeing planes. Give it time, and we will catch up. It’s just a process for many years. But it’s begun.
And as we see, some things that were considered inappropriate to voice to allies are now being voiced to the whole world. Trump and Musk blackmailed with Starlink quite normally, huh.
Illustration: ICEYE and Nokia
