Iran will impose fees on subsea internet cables in Strait of Hormuz

Iran has announced plans to impose fees on subsea internet cables running through the Strait of Hormuz and threatened to disrupt traffic if major tech companies like Google, Microsoft, and Meta don't comply and pay licensing fees. While the threat carries limited immediate force due to U.S. sanctions preventing these companies from making payments to Iran, it underscores Tehran's strategy to leverage its geographic control of the strait to demonstrate economic and strategic power beyond military force. Disrupting these cables would have global consequences, potentially affecting trillions of dollars in data transmission and critical infrastructure including banking, military communications, and cloud services worldwide.