Last month, Elon Musk offered uncensored internet access to activists protesting in Iran, and a US State Department official said the US would also take steps to help Iranians connect. Without delay, Musk activated SpaceX’s satellite internet service Starlink, and he said all he needed to get Iranian protesters online was to somehow install special terminals in Iran that could receive the signal. so far, Musk tweeted that only a few terminals are installed in the country.
More are still needed, and now it looks like the US may be taking steps to help. CNN reports that multiple US officials have confirmed that the Biden administration is in talks with Musk to potentially fulfill Biden’s promise earlier this month and actually help set up broad access to Starlink in Iran. However, CNN says it is not yet clear whether those discussions will lead to the US paying for the special terminals to be set up.
“We have our foot on the gas to do everything we can to support the aspirations of the Iranian people,” a senior government official told CNN.
The news of these talks comes days after Musk and the Pentagon ended discussions about who should fund Starlink in Ukraine. Those discussions ended when Musk withdrew SpaceX’s request for millions in Pentagon funding and SpaceX added a donation option to the Starlink service, “for those who want to donate to places in need.” Musk tweeted at the time.
Tension with the Pentagon over funding for Starlink is one of the reasons US officials are concerned that Musk may not be a reliable partner, with Musk at one point suggesting that he could not fund Starlink access in Ukraine indefinitely. But regardless of that tension, Starlink appears to be the best solution for the US so far, with the US teaming up again with Musk to provide internet service in another region ravaged by violence.
SpaceX did not immediately respond to Ars’s request for comment.
Making sure people in Iran get broad internet access doesn’t stop with installing the terminals, even if that’s where Musk’s talks with Biden lead. Iran bans technology like Starlink, but CNN notes that such technology “nevertheless abounds across the country.”
What is not plentiful is reliable internet access, and there is no guarantee that Starlink would be reliable if set up in Iran. Experts told CNN that unless activists in Iran understand how to hide internet signals from their country’s authoritarian regime, if too many people access the service, there is a risk that Iran’s security forces will quickly shut down terminals. And connecting to Starlink would pose risks for activists who want to support the US. Anyone who connects to Starlink in Iran could risk being charged as spies by the Iranian government.
That is why providing internet access in Iran is considered more challenging than helping in Ukraine, but US President Joe Biden has expressed unwavering support to protect Iran’s right to protest. He vowed earlier this month that he would make it easier for Iranian protesters to access the internet and make Iranian officials pay for obstructing citizens’ right to protest freely.
To help Biden succeed in this mission, Musk has once again been summoned to the White House. But not everyone is ready to trust Musk in this sensitive role. At least one US senior defense official told CNN, “He’s a loose cannon that we can never predict.”
