This content was originally published by Radio Free Asia, and it is now licensed for reprint.
As part of a master plan for telecoms network that focuses on emerging systems, Vietnam plans to lay two new undersea fiber optic cables, according to the government.
The choice of providers is proving questionable, amid reviews the U. S. is urging Vietnam to reconsider selecting Foreign firms.
Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Hoa Binh signed a digital infrastructure development strategy that aims to move out a highly delayed 5G mobile community by the end of the year on Wednesday. Reuters news agency reported.
In January, the state unveiled its Information and Communication Infrastructure Master Plan 2021-2030, which focuses on integrating technology like cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and the internet of things.
Vietnam wants to put as many as 10 fiber optic cables by 2030 as part of the program.
In contrast to companions who are South Asian, that would be comparatively small. By 2023, Singapore aims to include 39 wires, Malaysia 25, the Philippines 24, and Thailand 13.
Vietnam is now connected to the world’s internet via five underground cables. The aging system has suffered repeated losses over the past decade, slowing internet frequencies to a walk, Vietnamese media reported.
A government is trying to find a new provider because it wants to become a regional software hub and attract more business from the likes of Google and Meta.
U. S. Since January, Vietnamese counterparts have been fighting with their Taiwanese peers to persuade them not to work with Chinese companies like HMN Technologies. Reuters reported in September, citing individuals involved in or briefed about the deals.
Washington also shared satellite photos and other intelligence with Hanoi, which the news agency claimed did not name any suspected spies behind Vietnam’s cables, but it did say it suggested there might be damage of the country’s existing wires.
Vietnam faces three principal dangers if it chooses a Taiwanese cable company, according to Carl Thayer, professor professor at the University of New South Wales, Canberra.
China will be able to observe all traffic through this system and use all the data to analyze it for Big Data research to improve machine learning and artificial intelligence. This has regional defense implications, ” he said.
Second, in a crisis, China will be able to stymie prospects on the underwater cables.
Given the recent trend by the United States to decouple U.S. systems, Third, Vietnam may find itself reliant on Chinese technology. S. developed and produced products based on Chinese techniques. ”
However, purchasing American does n’t guarantee data security. In October 2023 the Washington Post cited records obtained by Edward Snowden, a former National Security Agency company, that reveal the company had quietly tapped the wires connecting Yahoo and Google’s global data centers, gathering web communications from hundreds of millions of accounts all over the world.
In light of a global drive to expand supply chains following the COVID, Vietnam and China increased bilateral ties to the highest levels in May 2008.
When Vietnam raised the U. S. on the same degree of relationship as China in September. 10, 2023 , the White House According to the statement, the arrangement furthers cooperation on important and emerging technologies in order to promote both the prosperity of our citizens and those living in the Indo-Pacific area. ”
Next month , Vietnam’s fresh General Secretary To Lam met with U.S. S. technical gizmos like Meta, Google, and Apple in New York as he attempted to convert discussions of technical assistance into concrete purchase.
“U. S. firms have greater knowledge and higher-level systems than Chinese rivals, ” according to Carl Thayer.
“U. S. and allies dominate international markets, including undersea cable techniques, with 42 of the top 50 telecommunications and tech firms, compared to China’s eight. ”