Mr. Elon Musk
February 26, 2024
Page 1 of 3
February 24, 2024 Elon Musk Chief Executive Officer SpaceX 1 Rocket Rd. Hawthorne, California Dear Mr. Musk,
I write today regarding highly concerning information about SpaceX’s refusal to provide the United States Department of Defense (Department) and other government agencies with contractually obligated
global
access to SpaceX broadband internet services. Starshield—which currently operates on commercial Starlink infrastructure—offers the U.S. government enhanced prioritization and global access to SpaceX’s installation of satellites. Indeed, the United States government has committed over $100 million of American taxpayer dollars to Starshield. I understand, however, 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. In December 2022, SpaceX launched Starshield, a system that will “leverage SpaceX’s Starlink technology and launch capability to support national security efforts.”
1
Starshield provides the U.S. government with a secure satellite network to support reliable imagery, sensing, and communications in space.
2
The promises of Starshield offer the U.S. military a strategic advantage in space and, indeed, the Pentagon is committing tens of millions of dollars over the next year for the program.
3
1
Starshield
, S
PACE
X (2023)
available at
www.spacex.com/starshield/.
2
Id.
3
Anthony Capaccio,
Elon Musk Wins US Space Force Contract for Starshield
, B
LOOMBERG
(Sep. 27, 2023)
available at
www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-09-27/elon-musk-wins-us-space-force-contract-for-starshield-deepening-pentagon-ties#xj4y7vzkg.
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Mr. Elon Musk
February 26, 2024
Page 2 of 3
Multiple sources have disclosed to the Committee that Starshield is inactive in and around Taiwan. A thriving island democracy roughly 100 miles off the coast of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), Taiwan is a cornerstone of the global economy and a vital partner of the United States. Taiwan—the centerpiece of the first island chain, which represents an essential line of defense against the CCP’s increasingly aggressive use of its military forces—lives under constant CCP threat of military aggression. Despite never having exercised control over Taiwan, the CCP has maintained a historical claim to sovereignty over Taiwan and continually threatens to “reunify” it with the PRC, by force if necessary. Recently, Taiwan has faced persistent military pressure from Beijing. Beginning in 2021, the number of Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft violating Taiwan’s Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) has spiked.
4
In the event of CCP military aggression against Taiwan, American servicemembers in the Western Pacific would be put at severe risk. Taiwan is a lynchpin of America’s ability to defend its allies, particularly Japan and the Philippines. Should Taiwan fall under the PRC’s control, it could cause allies to doubt America’s security commitments, a core objective of the CCP. As a CCP handbook for mid-career PLA officers put it, “As soon as Taiwan is reunified with mainland China, Japan’s maritime lines of communication will fall completely within the striking ranges of China’s fighters and bombers.”
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Ensuring robust communication networks for U.S. military personnel on and around Taiwan is paramount for safeguarding U.S. interests in the Indo-Pacific region. Therefore, I respectfully request that you provide the Select Committee with a briefing regarding Starshield availability in and around Taiwan as soon as possible but no later than March 8, 2024. The House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party has broad authority to “investigate and submit policy recommendations on the status of the Chinese Communist Party’s economic, technological, and security progress and its competition with the United States” under H. Res. 11. Thank you for your attention to this important matter and your prompt reply. To schedule the briefing or ask any follow-up related question, please contact Select Committee staff at (202) 226-9678.
4
For more information, see
Ten For Taiwan: Policy Recommendations to Preserve Peace and Stability in the Taiwan Strait
, T
HE
S
ELECT
C
OMMITTEE ON THE
C
HINESE
C
OMMUNIST
P
ARTY
(May 24, 2023)
available at
www.selectcommitteeontheccp.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/selectcommitteeontheccp.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/ten-for-taiwan-final-with-cover-page-2.pdf.
5
Id
&
Tanner Greer,
Losing Taiwan Means Losing Japan,
T
HE
S
CHOLAR
’
S
S
TAGE
(Feb. 26, 2020)
available at
https://scholars-stage.org/losing-taiwan-means-losing-japan.
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Mr. Elon Musk
February 26, 2024
Page 3 of 3
Sincerely,
Mike Gallagher
Chairman
