Amidst the increasing tension in West Asia, Iran is now moving its strategy beyond military power towards digital and economic pressure. Considering its geographical hold in the Strait of Hormuz strong, Iran has now planned to earn revenue from internet and data cables laid under the sea. This move has raised concerns among global tech companies and many countries.
The Iranian government and its affiliated media organizations have indicated that big tech companies like Google, Microsoft, Meta and Amazon may have to pay fees for the use of internet cables passing under the Strait of Hormuz. Iran’s military spokesman Ebrahim Zolfaghri said on social media platform X that a fee would be imposed on internet cables.
Is Iran moving towards digital war?
According to a CNN report, Iran now wants to use its geographical position as a strategic weapon. According to Bloomberg Economics’ West Asia expert Dina Esfandiari, Iran wants to send a message to the world that if it is attacked, the global economy could suffer huge losses. Experts have warned that if internet cables are damaged, its impact will not be limited to internet speed only. International banking, military communications, stock markets and even cloud services can be affected by this. This can have a direct impact on many countries in Asia including India.
There may be a big impact on India and Gulf countries
According to the report, the Strait of Hormuz is an important digital corridor between Asian data hubs and European networks. If there is any kind of disruption here, India’s outsourcing industry and online business may suffer a loss of billions of dollars. Digital systems related to oil and gas exports in Gulf countries may also be affected. Apart from this, the speed of financial transactions and share trading between Europe and Asia may slow down.
These cables are the backbone of the global internet network
According to experts, the submarine cables laid under the sea are the largest base of internet and data traffic in the world. A large part of banking systems, cloud services, online gaming, video streaming and AI data transfer between Europe, Asia and Gulf countries passes through these cables. Media organizations associated with Iran claimed that in future cable companies will have to pay license fees and only Iranian companies will get the right to repair. However, it is not yet clear how Iran will enforce these rules on international companies, as many foreign companies cannot make payments directly to Iran due to US sanctions.
Iran citing international law
Iranian media claims that this plan is being made under the international maritime law UNCLOS. According to this law, any coastal country can impose certain conditions on the cables coming within its maritime border. Using the example of Egypt and the Suez Canal, Iran is trying to prove that making economic profits from the strategic waterway is internationally acceptable. However, experts believe that the legal status of the Strait of Hormuz and the Suez Canal is different. At present, the world’s eyes are on Iran’s next strategy, because in the digital age, internet cables have become very important for the economy and security of any country.
Such attacks have happened before also
Incidents of targeting undersea communication cables are not new. During World War I, Britain cut Germany’s telegraph cable. Recently in 2024, three internet cables in the Red Sea were damaged in an attack linked to Yemen’s Houthi rebels, affecting about 25 percent of regional internet traffic. Although experts say that alternative routes exist in modern networks, but if there is a large-scale loss, the impact can be global.