A new subsea and terrestrial data cable project has emerged in the Middle East, with an Iraqi-Emirati consortium planning a multimillion-dollar initiative linking the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Turkey via Iraq. This move comes just weeks after Saudi Arabia unveiled its own ambitious fibre-optic project targeting Syria.
The Gulf neighbors are vying for a slice of the lucrative connectivity market and aim to establish themselves as key players in AI infrastructure, including data centers. The Iraqi-UAE collaboration known as WorldLink would involve an underwater cable from Fujairah, UAE, to Iraq’s Faw peninsula on the Arabian Gulf coast, followed by overland transport towards Turkey.
Ali El Ekabi, head of Tech 964—part of a consortium comprising three members including Iraq’s DIL Technologies and Breeze Investments based in the UAE—said WorldLink would be privately funded and executed in stages over the next five years. The project aims to alleviate transit challenges currently traversing through the Suez Canal.
Saudi Arabia, which has already announced its own fiber-optic network dubbed SilkLink targeting Syria for a $1 billion investment package, did not respond to requests for comment. Meanwhile, the Syrian telecoms ministry highlighted that additional investments would improve route diversity and resilience.
El Ekabi explained that WorldLink seeks to deliver low latency and high availability, promising competitive performance and resilience in an interconnected region undergoing economic and geopolitical competition.
Iraq, known for its post-conflict efforts to transform itself into a stable transit corridor, has also embarked on the $17 billion “Development Road” plan to connect Faw to Turkey. This underscores Iraq’s ambitious goals in leveraging its strategic position as a transit node.
The introduction of WorldLink signifies an evolving landscape in regional connectivity and infrastructure investment, reflecting ongoing dynamics within the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and broader Middle Eastern geopolitics.