ICEYE and Nokia Partner to Build Ukraine Sovereign Satellites
ICEYE and Nokia signed a Letter of Intent with Ukraine's Ministry of Defence to develop sovereign low Earth orbit satellite communications for military defense.
The Ministry of Defence of Ukraine signed a Letter of Intent with Finnish companies ICEYE and Nokia on October 22, 2026, to develop sovereign low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite communications. Announced during a visit by Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, the partnership aims to provide Ukraine with full ownership and control over its satellites, ground segments, and terminals to strengthen defense resilience.
The initiative leverages ICEYE's synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite constellation, which the company describes as the world's largest and most advanced. This project follows a broader October agreement between ICEYE and Nokia to create secure, high-performance broadband LEO systems for government use in border security, defense, and disaster response.
Ukraine is pursuing this sovereign capability to reduce its reliance on foreign-owned critical infrastructure. The move comes amid reports that Starlink throttled connection speeds for Ukrainian forces using the military-grade Starshield network to operate drones. While Donald Trump stated that full connectivity was restored, some Ukrainian officials report that speed restrictions remain, highlighting the risks of depending on third-party providers during active conflict.
