U.S. to counter Chinese internet bid in Papua New Guinea: diplomat โ Reuters
What happened: The US aims to limit Huaweiโs operations in Papua New Guinea by working on a counteroffer to the companyโs proposed plan to build internet infrastructure for the Oceanian nation. U.S. Charge dโAffaires in Australia James Caruso said on Australian Broadcasting Corporation radio that the aim is to provide an alternative, not to say: โDonโt do business with China.โ
Why itโs important: Islands nations in the Pacific are of particular strategic interest to both the US and China, as they each have votes in forums like the United Nations. In 2016, Huawei announced that it would build a network of submarine cables linking 14 towns in Papua New Guinea. But the influence of the Chinese government through the countryโs tech companies has observers worried. Most recently, Eric Schmidt, former chairperson of Googleโs parent company Alphabet, predicted that China would split the internet through the installation of infrastructure as part of its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). In this way, the country could control and monitor the flow of data being transferred in its cables.
