Despite the importance Taiwanese authorities attach to Starlink, SpaceX's insistence on obtaining a majority stake in the proposed joint venture is not compatible with local Taiwanese law, so Taiwanese authorities have not yet been able to introduce Starlink, which is one reason Taiwan has not been able to develop such technology on its own. This is one of the reasons why Taiwan is developing similar technology on its own
Lessons learned from the Russian-Ukrainian conflict are considered by U.S. and Taiwanese authorities as an important "source of inspiration" for dealing with possible conflicts in the Taiwan Strait.
Taiwan's first homemade weather satellite, Triton. Photo TASA
In addition to the Stingers, Javelins and other portable air defense systems that received attention during the Russian-Ukrainian war, SpaceX's Starlink Internet satellite system also received attention from Taiwan authorities.
The Starlink system is also appreciated by Taiwan authorities. CNN reported on March 4 that Taiwan is also trying to build a similar satellite communication network.
Pictured is Wu Zongxin, director of Taiwan's National Space Center. Photo TASA
Wu Zongxin, director of Taiwan's National Space Center, revealed the news in an exclusive interview with CNN, saying the project is currently in the "experimental development phase." "Although the scale is much smaller," the system, once in operation, could provide Internet services similar to the Starlink system.
High-speed Internet is vital to the normal functioning of any society, but in Taiwan's case, the disruption of Internet connectivity could have other implications.
A report published by Taiwan's National Institute of Defense and Security warned that if China disrupted the Internet fiber optic cables around Taiwan, it could cause widespread panic on the island.
Despite the importance Taiwanese authorities attach to Starlink, SpaceX's insistence on obtaining a majority stake in the proposed joint venture is not compatible with local Taiwanese law, so Taiwanese authorities have not yet been able to introduce Starlink, which is one reason Taiwan has not been able to develop such technology on its own.
This is one of the reasons why Taiwan is developing similar technology on its own.
However, there is little optimism among epserts that Taiwan authorities have similar capabilities.
Taiwanese authorities previously announced that they would develop two communications satellites, the first of which could be launched in 2026, and would then assist private companies in launching four other satellites.
But industry experts told CNN that if Taiwan wants to build a satellite system that will provide uninterrupted Internet service, hundreds of satellites will need to be launched. Brad Tucker, an astrophysicist at the Australian National University, estimated that Taiwan would need at least 50 satellites to provide "pretty good" emergency coverage, and that to have reliable bandwidth for everyone, "it would need many more [satellites], probably hundreds! ". Su Ziyun, director of Taiwan's National Defense Strategy and Resources Institute, said that Taiwan, before having its own satellite communications network, can also provide a back-up network through cooperation with the British satellite communications company OneNet and other maritime satellite systems.
In addition, Taiwan's space capabilities are very limited. In fact, both the development of launch vehicles and the development of communication satellites are still in the early stages, so creating a Taiwanese version of "Starlink" in the short term will be difficult to give.
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