Chile picks Japan's trans-Pacific cable route in snub to China

Decision a blow to Huawei and Chinese telecom sector

20200728N Submarine cable ship

A submarine-cable laying ship in the Caribbean Sea. Chile picked a route that would take the cable to New Zealand and Australia, not Shanghai. © Reuters

YOHEI HIROSE and NAOYUKI TOYAMA, Nikkei staff writers

TOKYO/SAO PAULO -- Chile has chosen a route proposed by Japan for the first fiber-optic cable to directly connect South America and the Asia-Pacific region, designating Australia and New Zealand as endpoints while stopping short of landing in China, Nikkei has learned.

Japan's route beat out a pitch by China that would have made Shanghai the final landing point. This decision comes amid a U.S. pressure campaign to keep China out of global telecommunication projects.

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