US throws weight behind Thai submarine cable that skips South China Sea

The US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) on Monday announced funding for a feasibility study on a new transpacific submarine cable linking the US with Thailand and as many as five other Southeast Asian nations, as Washington seeks to expand secure digital infrastructure in the region.

The proposed cable that could extend up to 18,507km (11,500 miles) long would connect Thailand with the United States via Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam, “while avoiding the South China Sea and other routes that carry security risks”, the agency said in a statement. The project would be built to US engineering standards and is intended to replace Thailand’s ageing subsea connection to the US.

The Thailand-US Submarine Cable System, or Thus, will “strengthen the resilience and diversity of our international networks, support the growth of Thailand’s data centre, cloud and AI sectors, and expand affordable connectivity”, said Colonel Sanpachai Huvanandana, president of the Thai state-owned National Telecom Public Company.

The US, facing competition from China, has made a concerted effort in recent years to expand its role in building subsea cables, which carry nearly all international internet traffic.