Iran’s Foreign Ministry summoned Norway’s ambassador to Tehran on Sunday to protest what it called Norway’s failure to stop the “unauthorized” operation of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service over Iranian territory. The meeting was reported on October 5 by Chinese state news agency Xinhua and by the Tehran-based WANA News Agency, both citing a ministry statement.
What Iran told the ambassador
According to both reports, the Iranian official set out Tehran’s position that the United States and Israel are abusing Starlink satellite internet systems to advance interventionist measures against Iran. Xinhua renders the complaint as an “abuse” by the two governments; WANA describes it as the use of Starlink systems to advance interventionist activities.
The official criticised Norway for failing to meet its obligations in connection with the Starlink registration, said the Norwegian government is obliged to prevent unauthorized transmissions over Iranian territory, and asked the ambassador to pass on Iran’s request for what Xinhua quotes as “effective and immediate” action — framing the service’s continued operation as a matter that compromises Iran’s national security and territorial sovereignty.
How the two reports compare
Where they agree
- The summons came from the Foreign Ministry’s director general for international peace and security and was delivered to Norway’s ambassador in Tehran.
- Iran’s complaint rests on Norway’s role in registering the Starlink network with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations agency that coordinates radio spectrum.
- Iran has raised the issue repeatedly and says Norway has taken no effective action.
- Both accounts rest entirely on the Iranian Foreign Ministry’s own description of the meeting.
Where they diverge
The transliterations differ. The Iranian official is Mohammad Hassan-Nejad Pirkouhi in Xinhua and Hassaninejad in WANA; the ambassador is Paal Bjornestad in Xinhua and Paul Bøer Nestad in WANA. Starlink News follows the Xinhua spellings here: as a wire service running a standing English-language file with a house romanisation standard, it is the likelier of the two to have checked the names against official usage, and WANA’s rendering splits the ambassador’s surname across two words.
On substance, Xinhua describes Norway as “one of the countries that registered the Starlink network” with the ITU, while WANA calls Norway “the country responsible for registering” it. WANA alone attributes the obligation Iran invokes to decisions adopted in recent years by the ITU’s Radio Regulations Board, and WANA alone reports that the official handed over a written note of protest.
Neither report names the Norwegian entity that made the filing or gives a registration date or number, so the exact scope of Norway’s role cannot be pinned down from these two accounts.
Why it matters
The dispute is not about coverage maps or subscription plans. It is about who is legally answerable for a satellite network’s signals when they fall on a country that has not licensed the service, and Iran routes that responsibility through the ITU filing rather than through SpaceX — which puts a European government, not the operator, on the receiving end of the protest.
Starlink as a diplomatic object
Xinhua notes that Iranian authorities have prohibited the use of Starlink satellite internet in the country over security concerns, which is why Tehran characterises any service on its territory as unauthorized. The protest is the latest instance of a government handling Starlink as a foreign-policy file rather than a consumer product: Ukraine has tied access to Starlink to a sanctions deadline in its dealings with Washington, and European industry is promoting sovereign satellite communications projects designed to cut reliance on Starlink. For readers far from Tehran, including in Africa, the editorial point is simply that Starlink’s market access keeps being decided by regulators rather than telecom operators — in this case at the level of spectrum filings between states.
Starlink News will update this story if Norway, SpaceX or the ITU comments.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does an ITU satellite registration point to Norway rather than to SpaceX?
Under International Telecommunication Union procedures, satellite network filings are submitted by a member state’s national administration on behalf of the operator, and that administration is the party the ITU deals with. Iran’s protest follows that chain to the registering state instead of to the company flying the satellites.
Did Iran say it is jamming or blocking Starlink signals?
No. Neither the Xinhua nor the WANA News Agency account mentions jamming, blocking or any other technical countermeasure. Tehran’s demand as reported is diplomatic: it asked Norway to act.
Has Iran taken the complaint to the ITU itself?
Neither report says so. No ITU proceeding, complaint or ruling connected to Sunday’s meeting appears in either account.
How many Starlink terminals are in use in Iran?
Neither report gives a figure, and neither says how any terminals reached the country or who operates them.
Follow Starlink News on Google. Make us a preferred source to see more of our reporting in Google search results.
