Who rules the subsea cables, rules the world

Internet cables are not exempt from the US-China tech struggle: Chinese state-owned telecoms companies are planning a major global data cable network that will rival a similar project being backed by the US, Reuters reports, citing four people involved with the plans. The USD 500 mn fiber-optic network would be one of the world’s largest, linking China to France via Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Singapore, and Hong Kong, the people said.

Splinternet: “The plan is a sign that an intensifying tech war between Beijing and Washington risks tearing the fabric of the internet,” the newswire writes. A Reuters report last month revealed that Washington has prevented a number of Chinese subsea cables from going ahead over the past four years, and at the same time is pushing ahead with the US-backed SeaMeWe-6 cable, which would also connect France to Singapore via Egypt and other countries.