Prime Minister Mark Carney has expressed a desire to move away from Starlink, the popular satellite internet service from Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
In a recent interview with the New York TimesCarney spoke about a vision for reducing Canada’s dependence on the United States He touched on issues such as trade and resources, as well as strategic and technological dependence.
“Starlink, we will diversify away, no question,” said Carney. Those times noted that he talked about past disruptions as well as Musk’s reluctance to extend Starlink coverage into Russian-occupied Crimea during a counterattack on a Crimean port.
Carney went on to acknowledge that other satellite internet options are not as capable, but said that “from a defense perspective, and certainly with other partners, Europeans, Koreans probably together, you can scale and you can cut that dependency.”
Notably, Starlink is a popular option in Canada. For rural residents, Starlink is a tough internet option to beat. It is already integrated with Rogers to support the company’s Rogers satellite coverage.
There are also alternatives in the wings. Canadian companies such as Terrestar and Telesat are working to set up their own satellite operations, while fellow carriers Bell and Telus are looking to AST SpaceMobile for their own upcoming satellite coverage. There is also the Amazon Leo which, while also American, could eventually be an alternative to Starlink.
Carney is not the first Canadian politician to take aim at Starlink. Ontario Premier Doug Ford canceled a $100 million contract the province had with Starlink in 2025 during the initial round of US tariffs.
Header image credit: SpaceX
Source: New York Times