🟥 CHINA RAISES FIBER OPTIC PRICES FOR RUSSIA — DEPENDENCE DEEPENS
According to reporting by Vedomosti, China has raised fiber optic cable prices for Russia by 2.5 to 4 times at the start of the year.
Russian industry sources link the increase to the global artificial intelligence boom, which has created high demand for fiber optic infrastructure.
Large AI models rely on thousands of interconnected servers inside data centers — and those servers are linked by dense fiber networks.
But Russia’s need is different.
⸻
📡 NOT AI — WAR
Fiber optic cable has become a key component in Russia’s battlefield adaptation.
It is used in:
• Fiber-guided FPV drones
• Secure battlefield communications
• Electronic warfare-resistant systems
Unlike radio-controlled drones, fiber-guided systems cannot be jammed. That has made them increasingly attractive in the war against Ukraine.
⸻
🏭 DOMESTIC PRODUCTION HALTED
Russia can no longer produce fiber optic cable at scale.
The country’s only major plant — Optic Fiber Systems in Saransk — reportedly stopped operating in May 2025 after repeated Ukrainian drone strikes.
With EU and U.S. supplies restricted by sanctions, Russia’s options narrowed sharply.
⸻
🇨🇳 FULL DEPENDENCE ON CHINA
That leaves China as the primary supplier.
If prices have indeed risen 2.5–4×, it underscores a structural shift:
Russia is no longer leveraging global markets.
It is increasingly reliant on a single partner.
In wartime logistics, dependency is vulnerability.
And when your military supply chain hinges on foreign pricing decisions, strategic autonomy shrinks.
The AI boom may be driving global demand.
But on the battlefield, fiber is no longer just data infrastructure.
It’s combat infrastructure.