Luxembourg has confirmed that capacity on GovSat-1 is contracted to United States European Command, offering a rare official glimpse into how the Grand Duchy’s military satellite infrastructure is used by a major allied command.
Defence minister 
Backes also stated that GovSat-1 was not used in the operation known as “Epic Fury”, because the capacity provided under the Eucom contract does not cover the geographical area linked to that operation.
Limited oversight
The reply points to a broader issue for Luxembourg’s defence-space strategy: how far the government can oversee the use of satellite capacity once it has been delivered to allied customers.
Backes stated that all LuxGovSat contracts require clients and end-users to comply with applicable national and international law, sanctions regimes and export-control rules. However, she acknowledged that neither LuxGovSat nor the Luxembourg government monitors the precise operational use of the capacity in real time, adding that it is technically impossible to control the traffic contained in the delivered capacity.
The contracts include enforcement measures that can go as far as immediate withdrawal, suspension or termination of services, particularly if an end-user is subject to international sanctions or involved in an internationally wrongful act.
SES and MGS
The same question of visibility also applies to Luxembourg’s Medium Earth Orbit Global Services programme, known as MGS. Luxembourg’s satellite communication capacity under MGS is already available to Luxembourg Defence and is being used operationally, according to Backes.
The capacity is deployed across several sites and theatres, including Sigonella in support of Nato intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, Romania for reach-back links supporting France within Nato’s Forward Land Forces and Mozambique under the European Military Assistance Mission Mozambique. Backes added that the systems are deployed and operated by Luxembourg Army personnel.
The United States and the Netherlands are also users of MGS. The US also has capacity on SES’s O3b mPOWER constellation, including through the programme.
However, Backes pointed to a clear limitation. The MGS contract was concluded between the Nato Support and Procurement Agency and SES under the Global Commercially Contracted Satcom Support Partnership, rather than directly between Luxembourg Defence and the US.
As a result, Luxembourg Defence is not involved in the contract’s execution and cannot know the details of how the capacity is used. Backes added that the same applies in reverse: the US cannot know which capacities are used by Luxembourg Defence.
Expanding space capabilities
The parliamentary reply also showed that Luxembourg’s defence-space role is expanding beyond GovSat-1 and MGS.
Backes noted that Luxembourg’s LUXEOSys Earth-observation system is still in orbital commissioning after launch, with validation and fine calibration of the camera ongoing. Slight delays have been recorded, but overall performance is in line with expectations and the system is expected to become operational around September 2026.
Luxembourg has also concluded cooperation agreements with Belgium, Germany and the European Union Satellite Centre.
The minister added that the Grand Duchy played a driving role in Nato’s Alliance Persistent Surveillance from Space programme, which brings together 19 nations and has been fully operational since 2026.
