Lawmakers Demand Elon Musk Provide SpaceX Internet To US Military In Taiwan

Forbes

Rep. Mike Gallagher, who led a delegation to Taiwan this week, said in a letter to Musk that SpaceX could possibly be in breach of its “contractual obligations with the U.S. government.”  A group of U.S. lawmakers are calling on Elon Musk to make SpaceX’s Starshield military-specific satellite communications network available to American defense forces in Taiwan after years of refusing to do business in the country.  In a letter to Musk obtained by Forbes, Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI) reminded the billionaire of SpaceX’s contractual obligation to provide the U.S. Department of Defense with “global access” to its satellite internet services. He noted that the Pentagon is committing “tens of millions of dollars” over the next year to StarShield, which uses low-Earth orbit satellites to provide communications and observational imagery to the military. “I understand that SpaceX is possibly withholding broadband internet services in and around Taiwan — possibly in breach of SpaceX’s contractual obligations with the U.S. government,” Gallagher, who is chair of the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, wrote in the letter dated February 24.  Read the full story on Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidjeans/2024/02/24/elon-musk-taiwan-spacex-starshield/?sh=117fc7227c1e  Forbes Daily Briefing shares the best of Forbes reporting on wealth, business, entrepreneurship, leadership and more. Tune in every day, seven days a week, to hear a new story. Subscribe here: https://art19.com/shows/forbes-daily-briefing  Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:  https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript  Stay Connected Forbes newsletters: https://newsletters.editorial.forbes.com Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes More From Forbes:  http://forbes.com  Forbes covers the intersection of entrepreneurship, wealth, technology, business and lifestyle with a focus on people and success.

Transcript

00:00 Here's your Forbes Daily Briefing for Wednesday, February 28.

00:05 Today on Forbes, lawmakers demand Elon Musk provide SpaceX Internet to U.S. military in

00:12 Taiwan.

00:13 A group of U.S. lawmakers are calling on Elon Musk to make SpaceX's Starshield military-specific

00:21 satellite communications network available to American defense forces in Taiwan after

00:26 years of refusing to do business in the country.

00:29 In a letter to Musk obtained by Forbes, Representative Mike Gallagher, Republican of Wisconsin, reminded

00:36 the billionaire of SpaceX's contractual obligation to provide the U.S. Department of Defense

00:41 with "global access" to its satellite Internet services.

00:46 He noted that the Pentagon is committing "tens of millions of dollars" over the next year

00:50 to Starshield, which uses low-Earth orbit satellites to provide communications and observational

00:56 imagery to the military.

00:59 In the letter, dated February 24, Gallagher, who is chair of the Select Committee on the

01:04 Chinese Communist Party, wrote, "I understand that SpaceX is possibly withholding broadband

01:10 Internet services in and around Taiwan, possibly in breach of SpaceX's contractual obligations

01:16 with the U.S. government.

01:18 A robust communication network for U.S. military personnel on and around Taiwan is paramount

01:23 for safeguarding U.S. interests in the Indo-Pacific region."

01:28 Gallagher added that, in the event of Chinese aggression against Taiwan, "American service

01:33 members in the Western Pacific would be put at severe risk."

01:38 The letter asks that Musk provide the Select Committee with a briefing about Starshield

01:41 availability in and around Taiwan by March 8, which is at the end of next week.

01:47 For Musk, the request is certain to discomfort.

01:51 He has close ties with China, where Tesla has a major manufacturing plant, and has very

01:56 publicly waded into the tensions the country has with self-governed Taiwan, which it views

02:01 as part of its territory.

02:03 In 2022, Musk suggested the tensions between Taipei and Beijing could be resolved if some

02:09 control of Taiwan was handed over to China.

02:13 The letter also highlights the uncomfortable reliance the U.S. government and military

02:17 have developed on SpaceX's satellites.

02:20 The Texas-based company has launched more than 5,000 satellites since 2019 and is the

02:25 top vendor of satellite communications in the world.

02:27 It is often the only way to get Internet access in remote areas, places destroyed by natural

02:33 disasters, and war zones.

02:36 The service has been crucial to Ukrainian forces battling a Russian invasion now in

02:41 its third year.

02:42 But here, too, things are fraught.

02:45 Ukraine military intelligence officials recently claimed Russian forces in the country are

02:49 also using Starlink satellite Internet terminals, undercutting a major battlefield advantage.

02:55 Musk has denied selling Starlink service to Russia.

03:00 Representative Gallagher was in Taiwan this past week with a delegation of Congress members

03:04 meeting with officials, including President Tsai Ing-wen, and has discussed the country's

03:08 need for a system like Starshield, which could back up its communications were China to cut

03:13 the undersea cables that connect it to the rest of the world.

03:17 Gallagher wrote in the letter that "multiple sources" had disclosed to his committee that

03:22 Starshield is currently inactive in and around Taiwan.

03:26 After Forbes published an exclusive about Gallagher's letter on Saturday, SpaceX said

03:31 in a statement that it is in full compliance with all of its U.S. government contracts.

03:36 In addition, the company said it had notified the select committee last week that it is

03:40 misinformed, "but the committee chose to contact media before seeking additional information."

03:45 When Taiwan first started discussions with SpaceX about Starlink in 2019, officials had

03:52 hoped to secure communications that weren't reliant on its undersea cables.

03:57 But talks quickly fell apart over a requirement that the government own a majority share of

04:01 any telecommunications companies doing business in the country.

04:05 Musk was adamant that he retain full ownership of Starlink operations in Taiwan and demanded

04:10 the requirement be waived or changed.

04:13 Talks have remained stalled ever since and Taiwan has begun developing a satellite system

04:18 of its own.

04:19 The issue took on a new urgency last February when Taiwan's National Communications Commission

04:24 blamed Chinese ships for cutting two undersea internet cables.

04:30 For full coverage, check out David Jean's piece on Forbes.com.

04:35 This is Kieran Meadows from Forbes.

04:37 Thanks for tuning in.

04:38 [MUSIC PLAYING]

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