美国贸易发展署（USTDA）宣布资助一项可行性研究，计划兴建一条长达 11,500 英里的跨太平洋海底光缆「THUS」，将美国与泰国及印尼、马来西亚、菲律宾、新加坡、越南等东南亚五国相连。该项目旨在采用美国工程标准，取代泰国老旧的海底电缆，并借由避开南海等具有安全风险的路线，以扩展该区域的安全数位基础设施。

泰国国有国家电信公司总裁指出，泰美海底光缆系统将增强国际网路的韧性与多元性，不仅扩大实惠的网路连线能力，还能全力支援泰国资料中心、云端运算及人工智慧产业的迅速扩展与发展需求。

面对来自中国的战略竞争，华盛顿近年积极扩大在承载全球绝大多数网路流量的海底电缆领域之影响力。随著北京在南海等战略水域的主权主张使铺设计划复杂化，美方亦同步推动菲律宾苏比克湾港口设施扩建及能源基建，全力抗衡中国在印太地区的影响力。

The US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) announced funding for a feasibility study on the Thailand-U.S. Submarine Cable System (THUS), an up to 11,500-mile trans-Pacific subsea cable connecting the US with Thailand and up to five other Southeast Asian nations including Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Vietnam. Designed to US engineering standards, the project aims to replace Thailand's aging infrastructure while expanding secure digital connectivity by intentionally avoiding security-sensitive routes such as the South China Sea.

Colonel Sanpachai Huvanandana, President of Thailand's state-owned National Telecom Public Company Ltd., emphasized that the THUS project will bolster the resilience and diversity of international networks, expand affordable connectivity, and significantly support the growth of Thailand's data center, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence sectors.

Amid escalating strategic competition with China over global internet infrastructure, the US is actively intensifying its role in laying trans-Pacific undersea cables across the Indo-Pacific. Countering Beijing's territorial claims and geopolitical footprint, Washington is simultaneously backing infrastructure projects such as port expansions and energy developments in the Philippines to counterbalance China's regional influence.