The United States has warned Pacific island nations about security threats posed by a Chinese company’s cut-price bid to build an undersea internet cable in the region from China’s Huawei Marine.
It’s a nearly $73 million project, bankrolled in part by the World Bank, designed to give an internet boost to Nauru, Micronesia, and Kiribati.
Chinese telecom companies have come under scrutiny abroad, especially giant Huawei Technologies.
President Donald Trump’s administration has pressured allies to squeeze the company out of future infrastructure projects.
The cable project could be especially risky for Washington.
According to plans, it would connect to another undersea cable used primarily by the U.S. government which lands at the U.S. territory of Guam, an important base for the military.
Huawei Marine’s bid came in at more than 20 percent below rivals.
