New Delhi: India’s eastern neighbour, Bangladesh which is now being led by interim government under Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus after the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s Awami league last year, is intensifying its efforts to engage with Tesla and the United States. Chief Adviser Yunus held talks via video conferencing with SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk to accelerate the introduction of Starlink satellite internet service in Bangladesh. Sources claim that the call was initiated by the Yunus government, and not by Musk. The call took place the same day when the world’s richest man and the tech-giant Musk met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was in Washington at United States President Donald Trump’s invitation. The talks highlighted “the transformational impact of Starlink’s satellite communications, particularly for Bangladesh’s enterprising youth, rural and vulnerable women and remote communities”, a communication from the interim government stated. “Professor Yunus stated that integrating Starlink’s connectivity into Bangladesh’s infrastructure would create new opportunities for millions and integrate the country more closely into the global digital economy”, it said.
Present in the meeting were Dr. Khalilur Rahman, High Representative for the Rohingya crisis and priority Issues, and Lamiya Morshed, Principal Coordinator of SDGs, on the Bangladesh side, and Lauren Dreyer, Vice President and Richard Griffiths, Global Engagement Adviser on the Space X side. Elon Musk on his part praised the Grameen Bank microfinance model, acknowledging its global impact on poverty alleviation. Prof Yunus extended an invitation to Elon Musk to visit Bangladesh for the potential launch of Starlink services, to which he replied that, “I look forward to it”.
It is pertinent to note here that Dhaka’s push for Starlink comes amid concerns in New Delhi over satellite internet networks potentially being used to bypass government-imposed internet shutdowns in Manipur which is facing ethnic clashes followed by violent unrest for the last two years.
Multiple reports have suggested that Starlink satellites may have been leveraged by militant groups to maintain communications in conflict zones, but Musk has categorically denied Starlink’s presence in India.
According to the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), the new draft permits wholly owned foreign entities to obtain such licenses in the country which paves the way for Starlink’s entry into Bangladesh.