Beeline Kazakhstan makes first Starlink call in Central Asia

Beeline Kazakhstan, owned by Veon, has carried out Central Asia’s first mobile call over Starlink’s direct-to-device satellite service. In a field test in the Akmolinskaya region, CEO Evgeniy Nastradin and Kazakhstan’s deputy prime minister Zhaslan Madiyev used a regular 4G smartphone with a Beeline SIM to place a WhatsApp audio call to Veon Group CEO Kaan Terzioglu. They also sent SMS and WhatsApp text messages over the satellite link.

The trial targets Kazakhstan’s longstanding coverage gaps in remote and sparsely populated areas. Madiyev said the technology could keep people connected in places without traditional infrastructure, describing it as a safety measure for a country with large stretches of steppe, mountains and forests. Veon recently launched Starlink’s D2D service in Ukraine through Kyivstar, which drew 300,000 users in its first day. Beeline Kazakhstan aims to offer Starlink-based SMS services to customers from 2026, pending regulatory approval.