🧠 Food for thought

Implications, context, and why it matters.

Japan’s export rules may block lethal arms to Taiwan

• Japan’s rules allow defense exports in five non-lethal (non-combat) categories until 2026 1.
• Japan’s 2015 defense law permits collective self-defense (helping partners) only in “survival-threatening situations” posing an existential threat to Japan. China’s government says this should not cover Taiwan contingencies 2.
• China has condemned any Japanese offensive weapons deployment near Taiwan as violating the Potsdam Proclamation (World War II surrender terms) and Japan’s pacifist constitution (the war-renouncing clause) 3.
• Taiwan’s defense industry collaboration with Japan likely stays limited to dual-use technologies (civilian and military applications) and non-lethal gear, not the combat systems implied by cooperation rhetoric 1.

AI operators should track Taiwan-Japan subsea cables

• The Candle subsea cable will link Japan to Singapore via Taiwan plus the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia delivering 570 terabits per second (Tbps) by 2028 with 24 fiber pairs 4.
• Japanese telecom and tech group SoftBank is building cable landing stations (shore facilities where subsea cables connect to terrestrial networks) in Hokkaido and Kyushu to add route diversity 5.
• If Taiwan scales AI with Japan’s Innovative Optical and Wireless Network (IOWN) vendors should prioritize bids for high-capacity data center interconnects (links between data centers) at landing stations in Minamiboso, Tomakomai and Itoshima 5.
• Chunghwa Telecom (Taiwan’s largest telecom operator) will deploy the SJC2 and Apricot subsea cables in H1 2025 6. It plans to allocate about 25.2% of its 2025 capital expenditures (capex) to non-mobile segments, including building submarine cables to support AI infrastructure 6.