this post was submitted on 15 Aug 2025
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Datacenter diplomacy: Australia commits to help Vanuatu build bit barns to keep China at bay (www.theregister.com)
submitted 1 month ago by Hotznplotzn@lemmy.sdf.org to c/australia@aussie.zone
8 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

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Australia will help to fund the development of two datacenters in the Pacific island nation Vanuatu, an example of tech infrastructure becoming an important diplomatic consideration.

Vanuatu is around 2,000 kilometers from Australia’s east coast. The country is home to around 320,000 people, and its GDP is just over $1 billion.

Despite Vanuatu’s small size, Australia has courted the nation and others in the Pacific because China is doing likewise. The Middle Kingdom’s diplomacy often includes proposals to create facilities that its navy could use, sweetened by offers to build submarine cables or mobile networks.

Australia does not want China gaining access to Pacific ports, or influence in the region. Japan and the USA support that policy and when Chinese entities expressed an interest in acquiring the biggest mobile carrier in the Pacific – Digicel – helped to fund a takeover by Australian carrier Telstra. Once Telstra took control of Digicel, it ripped out Huawei gear over fears it could enable espionage.

In 2022, Australia and Vanuatu negotiated a Bilateral Security-Agreement that kept the Pacific nation in Australia’s sphere of influence. Earlier this year, Vanuatu’s new prime minister Jotham Napat scrapped the 2022 deal and sought another.

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[–] FundMECFSResearch@lemmy.cafe 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Libertarian Socialism. Like Rojava.

Not specifically for Vanuatu. It just seems a superior system if the wellbeing of the people are what’s judged most important.

[–] randomname@scribe.disroot.org 4 points 1 month ago (1 children)

In theory, I would prefer democratic socialism if I had to choose one from all the '-isms', but that would likely work only if your neighbours and partner countries respect the rule of law and act accordingly. There is a big bully in the region, and Australia is certainly among the best alternative partners you can choose imo.

[–] FundMECFSResearch@lemmy.cafe 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Democratic Socialism and Libertarian Socialism aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive.

Rojava itself could arguably be described as both.

[–] randomname@scribe.disroot.org 2 points 1 month ago

Well, no theory works perfectly in the real world. But the big problem here is the bully.