Ottawa Signs C$2.3 Billion Telesat Deal as World Turns From Starlink

Canada has signed a C$2.3 billion (€1.4 billion) contract with national satellite operator Telesat to expand its Lightspeed low-Earth-orbit constellation, the largest single commitment yet in a wave of sovereign satellite programmes now reshaping the market SpaceX built.

The deal, which adds a dedicated secure military communications system in the Ka-band, follows alleged pressure by Elon Musk and US President Donald Trump on Ukraine, accompanied by a temporary shutdown of Starshield, the military variant of Starlink. SpaceX now risks losing a substantial share of its global Starlink business. Trust erosion is also cancelling future contracts. Countries that were close to finalising agreements are opting out.

One commentator captured the shift bluntly: "the USA has gone from leader of the free world to its antagonist. It went from the 'go to' source of innovation to the catalyst for the consolidation of the real free world as its greatest competition. It took the USA less than two years to shift from supplier of choice to supplier of last resort."

What does this change for satellite buyers?

Governments that once treated Starlink as the default LEO option now fund domestic or allied alternatives. The pipeline stretches across four continents.

Canada and the EU. Beyond the Telesat deal, Ottawa has ordered additional satellites from MDA Space. On October 30 Canada and the EU announced expanded cooperation on satellites and secure communications. At a Montreal summit, leaders agreed to negotiate Canadian access to Galileo, Europe's navigation system, and to explore Canadian participation in IRIS², the EU's planned 330-satellite secure communications network. MDA Space separately secured an agreement worth more than C$100 million to supply advanced antennas and controllers for the first 66 IRIS² satellites, scheduled to launch in 2029.

European Union. The European Commission has moved toward awarding manufacturing contracts and increasing funding for IRIS². Airbus Defence and Space has signed contracts in Toulouse, with Eutelsat, to build the first 66 LEO satellites for military functionality. Thales Alenia Space will develop specialised secure payloads for government use. The programme has expanded to 348 satellites, with an additional €4 billion in funding. Belgium's Aerospacelab is building 264 LEO satellites for the constellation. Europe also retains access to the Luxembourg-based GOVSATCOM craft.

Finland. ICEYE, a synthetic aperture radar satellite developer, and Nokia have formed a strategic partnership to build sovereign LEO broadband systems for European governments. The concept, branded "Sovereign SatCom," gives each government full ownership and control of its own satellite infrastructure, including encryption, without dependence on foreign providers.

Ukraine. The UASAT project, led by local business STETMAN with a consortium of partners, has completed registration with the International Telecommunication Union. Testing has begun on the UASAT-NANO craft launched on October 1, the first step toward a Ukrainian sovereign constellation. The satellite, built by Denmark's GomSpace, launched on a SpaceX rocket and now operates under Ukrainian operator control in the interest of national strategic security. Ukraine is also expected to gain backup capacity within GOVSATCOM. The next stage is localising satellite and ground terminal production in Ukraine.

Czech Republic. Agreements are being finalised for the joint development of Suziria, Ukrainian for "Constellation," a system of optical reconnaissance satellites.

Asia and the Middle East build their own

South Korea conducted its first orbital launch of the year with the domestically developed Nuri (KSLV-II) rocket from the Naro Space Center. The vehicle deployed 14 payloads simultaneously, including additional satellites for the national NEONSAT constellation and several military CubeSats.

Japan has allocated roughly $1 billion in subsidies for a nationally controlled direct-to-device satellite network. Ordinary smartphones would connect directly to satellites during major earthquakes or military conflicts. Rakuten and AST SpaceMobile are cooperating on the project.

India remains closed to SpaceX and Starlink — and to other would-be entrants including Eutelsat's OneWeb. Local player Reliance Jio plans to build around 1,600 LEO satellites supported by 23 ground teleports.

Türkiye is developing Astralink, a sovereign LEO constellation led by defence group ASELSAN. The plan covers 198 dual-use satellites for civilian and military communications, with a first test satellite launching in 2028.

Germany's Isar Aerospace successfully launched its Spectrum rocket into orbit carrying satellites on September 5. Germany is also developing a military LEO programme for its army.

South Africa has denied Musk, despite his South African birth, access to the potentially lucrative market for Starlink.

The UAE's Space42 is working with California-based Viasat on Equatys, a global direct-to-device and mobile satellite services system. Reported funding stands at $1 billion (€0.89 billion). The architecture foresees 2,800 satellites across 60 orbital planes, backed by more than 100 MHz of combined MSS spectrum and over 400 mobile network operator relationships, leveraging Space42's existing Thuraya/Yahsat geostationary coverage. Mubadala, the UAE sovereign wealth fund, backs Space42. On October 28 Canada's Terrestar, part-owned by Mubadala, joined Equatys.

Commercial challengers move in

Rocket Lab is buying Iridium, an established global operator with strong military and government contacts. Rocket Lab brings satellite manufacturing capacity and recently acquired Mynaric, which builds laser connectivity units for satellites.

Elveo, the venture combining Lynk and Omnispace and backed in part by SES, targets global D2D voice and initial "light data." It plans to self-build its D2D fleet, is negotiating launch capacity, and intends satellite production in Washington DC, at SES, and in Asia.

The political backdrop

Musk's commercial position is entangled with US politics. Before Trump's second term, Musk's companies faced at least 32 open federal investigations and roughly $2.37 billion in potential fines. After the re-election, the Department of Justice dropped its discrimination suit against SpaceX, and other agencies dropped cases or cancelled reviews. Since Trump returned, SpaceX has received more than $560 million in government work, a $2.29 billion Space Force contract, and a $4.16 billion satellite deal in May. Musk's companies have received at least $38 billion in combined federal and state support. Musk is reportedly wary of a Democratic victory in the US mid-term elections.

The wider lesson is already driving procurement. Whoever controls your communications can control your future, and governments from Ottawa to Ankara are now spending accordingly. Canada's IRIS²-linked launches begin in 2029; Türkiye's first Astralink test satellite follows in 2028.