Although Elon Musk’s Starlink project has brought internet coverage to many remote areas in South America, Bolivia has chosen to reject this service and instead continue relying on Chinese satellites. This Andean mountainous country with a population of 12 million, even though facing problems such as slow web loading and lagging video playback, still remains cautious about Starlink’s high-speed network proposal.
In South America, the expansion of Starlink has almost covered all the countries in the region, and even extended the network signal to the indigenous communities deep in the Amazon rainforest. However, in Bolivia, the government refused to issue an operating license to it last year. Experts and officials are concerned that Starlink often forms an uncontrolled dominant position in the countries it enters, while Bolivia is more inclined to rely on the local satellite system jointly developed by China.
This sense of vigilance towards Musk’s influence is not an isolated case. In the Caribbean region, Europe, and South Africa, Starlink has also encountered resistance. Musk once claimed that “Starlink is irreplaceable” and frequently promoted his right-wing political stance through the social platform X. His high-profile attitude towards his own power has exacerbated the doubts of various countries. Antoine Grelletier, the director of the global aerospace business at the British consulting firm Analysys Mason, pointed out: “Countries have realized that they cannot rely solely on a single force.”
The Bolivian government’s concerns about Starlink focus on potential sovereignty risks. The country’s space agency director, Ivan Zambrana, acknowledged that Starlink is “technologically superior” to existing services, but emphasized that regulatory authorities must establish rules to ensure fair competition and benefit the local economy, rather than squeezing the survival space of local internet providers. “Any company entering our market will take a piece of the pie, and this pie currently belongs to our local enterprises,” he said.
Meanwhile, Bolivia insists that the existing Chinese-made satellites are already sufficiently reliable. Since 2013, Bolivia has been operating a communication satellite developed by China, which is currently managed by the Bolivian Space Agency. Although this satellite is expected to stop functioning as early as 2028 due to fuel depletion, Bolivia is not in a hurry to introduce Starlink. Instead, it has initiated preliminary consultations with Shanghai Yuxin Satellite Technology Company of China regarding the establishment of a new satellite network.
Bolivian Ambassador to China Hugo Celest said straightforwardly: “We continue to cooperate with China because we believe that the Chinese side fully respects Bolivian laws and national sovereignty.” This cooperative model based on mutual trust may explain why this South American country chose to prioritize sovereignty in its own technological cooperation chapter in the global communication revolution sparked by Starlink. And the controversy over Starlink’s access also reflects the complex game of power between technological advantages and national sovereignty in the process of globalization.
Although Elon Musk’s Starlink has brought internet access to some of the most remote areas in South America, Bolivia has refused to adopt this service and instead continues to use Chinese satellites.
In Bolivia, web page loading speeds are extremely slow, and videos often experience lag and interruptions. In regions outside the country’s largest city, the nearest network signal sometimes has to traverse rugged mountain roads and can take several hours to reach. Therefore, when Musk’s Starlink proposed to provide Bolivia with high-speed and affordable space internet services, many people thought that this Andean mountainous country with a population of 12 million would readily accept it. However, Bolivia rejected this proposal.
The Starlink satellite internet service launched by SpaceX has made significant progress in South America, covering almost all the countries in the region and bringing high-speed internet to the most remote areas. It even extended to the Amazon rainforest and connected isolated indigenous communities. However, the expansion of Starlink encountered resistance in Bolivia, where the country refused to grant it an operating license last year. Experts and officials are concerned that Starlink has gained unrestricted dominance in every country where it operates. Bolivia, on the other hand, chose to continue relying on its domestically produced satellite system, which was built by China.
Concerns about the influence of Musk are not unique to Bolivia. Other countries are also beginning to worry that SpaceX and its CEO Elon Musk are exerting political influence by controlling the government, the military, and the global communication networks that the public relies on. Similar resistance has also been encountered with Starlink in the Caribbean region, Europe, and South Africa. Musk claims that “Starlink has no substitutes” and frequently uses his social platform X to promote right-wing political positions, expressing his power claims without any concealment. Antoine Grelletier, the director of global aerospace business at the British consulting firm Analysys Mason, said: “Countries have realized that they cannot rely solely on a single force.”
Although the Starlink project has been successful in other regions, the Bolivian government is skeptical about it. The Bolivian authorities and experts claim that they are concerned that the project might lead to unfair competition and undermine national sovereignty, as it would give a powerful foreign company too much control, and this company might try to use its influence to affect Bolivia’s relevant regulations in its favor, making them favorable to itself. The director of Bolivia’s space agency, Ivan Zambrana, said that Starlink is “technologically superior” to Bolivia’s existing internet services, but he added that the regulatory authorities must formulate rules to ensure that Starlink contributes to Bolivia’s economy and competes “fairly” without harming local internet providers. Zambrana said: “Any company coming to do business in our country will take a piece of the pie, and this pie currently belongs to our own domestic enterprises.”
Zambraná downplayed Bolivia’s demand for Starlink, insisting that the Chinese-made satellites currently used in Bolivia are “reliable” and can provide nationwide internet coverage. He said: “These services do not have specific areas that cannot be covered.” Currently, Bolivia has a Chinese-made communication satellite, which has been in operation since its launch in 2013 and is currently managed by the Bolivian Space Agency. This satellite is approaching the end of its service life and is expected to stop working as early as 2028 due to fuel depletion. Bolivia’s ambassador to China, Hugo Celest, stated that Bolivia is still evaluating how to replace this satellite. The Bolivian side has held preliminary consultations with Shanghai Yuxin Satellite Technology Co., Ltd. in China to explore the possibility of using its under-construction satellite network. Celest said: “We have been cooperating with China because we believe that the Chinese fully respect Bolivia’s laws and national sovereignty.”
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