The Gulf built oil pipelines to avoid Hormuz. It’s now doing the same for data
AI Summary
Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE are financing rival data corridor projects through Syria, Iraq, and East Africa to bypass maritime choke points threatened by the U.S.-Iran conflict. The strategy mirrors how Gulf states previously built oil pipelines to circumvent the Strait of Hormuz. These digital infrastructure investments represent a major geopolitical and technological realignment in regional connectivity.
Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE are financing competing data corridors through Syria, Iraq, and East Africa to bypass the two maritime choke points that threaten their digital connectivity.