Toni Dimaano Tech 10.11.2022 03:Oct AM EDT

Elon Musk Reveals That China Asked Him Not to Sell Starlink Within the Country

China withholds Starlink's access in the country as the government disapproves of its recent rollout in Ukraine amidst its conflict with Russia.

PElon Musk told FinancialT Times that Beijing asked for assurances that he will not sell in China, while Taiwan, Mongolia and Vietnam are pending for regulatory approval, The Verge reports.

Starlink Satellite Internet Service Is Not Received Well In China

Starlink, an unconventional service provider that circumvents network-based censorship, has been introduced to the Chinese government, but was only met with opposition.

The SpaceX initiative is described as a satellite constellation system which delivers internet coverage in hard to reach areas where connectivity is weak or nearly impossible, Verdict says.

This SpaceX's satellite service provider enabled access to censored content on the internet , which champions freedom of speech, aligning with Musk's personal principles.

Business Insider says that the CEO was met with retaliation as China pointed out that they are not in favor of Starlink's deployment in Ukraine.

The billionaire said that they sent Ukraine a shipment of Starlink satellite internet dishes two days after Russia invaded Ukraine.

This helped Ukraine stay connected with other countries for support while Russia was attempting to take over the country.

Verdict reports that the satellite shipments allowed Ukraine officials to know about and assess the blockades in their occupied territories.

CNBC speculates that the rejection of Starlink is linked to China's political stance on the Ukraine-Russia war, as the country still refuses to call the attack an invasion.

However, China argues that this is solely because its government is putting a greater emphasis on building up on its own technology, relying on services including those in aerospace.

China Aims To Be Self-Reliant But Musk Needs It For Support

China Mobile and Huawei are two of the domestic telecom giants that have helped China in achieving its goal of having the highest penetrations of 5G internet, CNBC reports.

China has also been self-sufficient in providing its greater population with connectivity through its own satellite communications system called Beidou.

However, not only does China dominate their own telecommunication markets, but it is also a leading country in the world for manufacturing products for export.

While the internet connectivity in China is only accessible through state-owned providers, US companies like Tesla rely on the country for large scale production and manufacturing.

PC Mag claims that because of this, it is unlikely that Musk is going to go against the government's request as China holds 20% of Tesla's revenue.

Tesla, Musk's automobile company, has a major factory in Shanghai where they get thousands of vehicles to serve in markets in three continents.

Teslarati believes that given the situation, Musk has admitted that operations may be gravely affected by any conflict in the region, possibly blocking supplies from reaching Tesla factories.

Additionally, must the Tesla CEO decide to push against the demands of the Chinese government, the company might be looking at factory closure as well, PC Mag writes.