Greenland's telecommunications provider to tie up with Starlink

Greenland's telecommunications company Tusass has been negotiating a contract for internet and telephony via satellite with the US provider Starlink and its owner Elon Musk since December. Tusass CEO Toke Binzer confirmed this to the Danish broadcaster TV 2, stating that he is interested in using "the best technology available on the market". He sees "some clear advantages of Starlink, but of course there are also some challenges." Closer ties between Greenland and the USA are considered particularly politically sensitive after US President Donald Trump once again made territorial claims to the island region. In view of the transatlantic tensions, Europe is increasingly trying to become less dependent on US technology and associated services.

Tusass currently has a monopoly on telecommunications connections to and within Greenland. According to the report, the telephone and internet supply of the autonomous territory of Denmark with around 56,000 inhabitants is currently heavily dependent on two submarine cables at the bottom of the North Atlantic. There is also an existing satellite connection, but this can only cover around one percent of the total demand. Especially in sparsely populated areas in North and East Greenland, there are no or only very poor internet connections. Starlink could in principle serve as an "additional lifeline to the outside world" here, explains TV 2, but there is still a great deal of skepticism about a deal with Musk. Military consultant Alexander Whit is not the only one to warn that Greenland's critical infrastructure could end up in the hands of the tech billionaire and Trump adviser.

Whit told the broadcaster that Starlink had repeatedly threatened to shut down the service in Ukraine. Poland pays for this connection. Even if Musk has denied this, the question arises as to whether partners can trust contracts with Starlink at all. If Trump insists on getting Greenland, the Americans could cut off the internet to the disputed territory. Aaja Chemnitz, who sits in the Danish parliament Folketing for the Inuit Ataqatigiit party, also cannot imagine Starlink getting involved. According to her, internet coverage in parts of Greenland should be improved, but her trust in the USA has plummeted. She would therefore prefer Greenland to find a solution with Denmark. The EU is currently developing a Starlink alternative with the "Infrastructure for Resilience, Interconnectivity and Security through Satellites" (IRIS2).

Complete coverage through Starlink unrealistic

The leaders of the liberal-conservative Atassut party and the independence party Naleraq described it as absolutely crucial to have more options for internet coverage. The Greenlanders should be allowed to use any foreign satellite service, including Starlink. Tusass CEO Binzer emphasized that it is "extremely important" that the network operator retains ownership of the critical infrastructure. Starlink's current business model makes it difficult to reach an agreement. Musk's company basically claims direct access to customers, which is not compatible with the Tusass monopoly. Binzer did not want to comment on regions that Starlink could potentially cover, as the company has signed a non-disclosure agreement.

Even if the monopoly were to be broken up, complete coverage by Musk's company would be unrealistic, Signe Ravn-Højgaard, Director of the Digital Infrastructure think tank, told TV 2. Starlink would not be able to provide the internet capacity currently required in large cities on the island such as Nuuk. However, the service could supplement existing lines and serve as a backup in the event of a submarine cable break. The Danish Ministry of Defense announced that the local government in Greenland would have to decide on critical infrastructure. A recent report that the Italian government is negotiating a multi-billion euro contract with SpaceX to provide secure communication via Starlink and wants to bypass IRIS2 also caused a stir.

(nie)