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SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet constellation is the cause of significant debate in China as researchers consider developing similar technologies and those to shoot down the satellites or limit the Starlink internet service. Starlink has played an important role in Ukraine's defense against the Russian invasion, enabling the Ukrainian military to maintain battlefield communications and the general population to ensure Internet access after Ukraine's communications networks were targeted. Chinese researchers believe that Starlink's success in Ukraine will prompt Western nations to deploy the service in Asia in case of possible hostilities.

Starlink's Success In Ukraine Prompts China To Consider Developing Similar Technologies

Starlink's use in Ukraine has been a cause of controversy both within Russia and in the West. SpaceX quickly shipped its satellite user dishes to Ukraine as the invasion started last year. Still, matters between SpaceX and the U.S. government soured later on when reports about funding the cost of Starlink in Ukraine started to surface. Things settled when SpaceX's chief Mr. Elon Musk publicly announced that his company would continue to fund Starlink in Ukraine. The firm's president, Ms. Gwynne Shotwell, confirmed later that she had asked the Pentagon to contribute to Ukraine costs. Ukraine's minister of information also highlighted earlier this year that Starlink's contribution in Ukraine had crossed $100 million.

With this backdrop, the Ukrainian military's ability to restore its communications through Starlink is causing concern among Chinese researchers. A Reuters investigation that dug through 100 research papers in Chinese journals covering work from researchers linked to the People's Liberation Army (PLA), weapons manufacturers and think-tanks found that PLA-linked researchers are worried about China's ability to counter Starlink.

The first batch of Starlink dishes shipped to Ukraine in February last year. Image: FedorovMykhailo/Twitter

Out of the 100 papers, six discussed Starlink and pointed out its success in enabling the Ukrainian military to recover communications capability after the Russian attack can embolden Western nations to use it in a potential Asian conflict. Tensions in the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait are a consistent source of friction between the U.S. and China. Any potential conflict also threatens to disrupt the global semiconductor supply chain because the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company's (TSMC) chipmaking facilities in Taiwan are one of the few in the world capable of manufacturing and shipping leading-edge semiconductors.

This potential ability of the internet service to serve as a battlefield disruptor has also made the researchers stress the need for China to develop a capability to either block Starlink services or shoot down the satellites themselves. The Starlink internet constellation comprises thousands of small satellites operating at close to 500 kilometers altitude in the low Earth orbit (LEO). It has allowed Ukrainians to withstand devastating missile attacks and maintain communications, and at the same time, drawn sharp criticism from Russia, which has threatened military action against the spacecraft.

Starlink usage in Ukraine has also been high, with data from Musk highlighting that Ukrainians usedthousands of gigabytes of data daily in May last year. Apart from threatening to shoot the satellites, Russia has also taken steps to develop a jamming system mounted on a vehicle for countering Starlink use by blocking the signal that the user dishes use to communicate with the orbiting satellites.