Taiwan reports disruption of undersea cables to Matsu Islands for 2nd time in 2 months

By Berk Kutay Gokmen

ISTANBUL (AA) – Taipei said Monday that undersea cables connecting Taiwan and the Matsu Islands, which lie close to mainland China, suffered “total disruption” on Sunday, marking the second such incident in two months.

The disconnection occurred on the Taiwan-Matsu No. 2 cable in waters off New Taipei, affecting the fiber-optic telecommunications link, Taiwan's Digital Affairs Ministry said in a statement.

Following the disconnection, Taiwan’s Information and Communications Ministry urged Chunghwa Telecom “to activate the microwave backup system and transfer voice communications and Internet services via the cable to the microwave link.”

The problem is in the “aging of the core cable of the Taiwan-Matsu Cable No. 2,” which has been “a problem in the past few months,” said the ministry.

A similar cable disconnection between Taiwan and Matsu occurred on Jan. 22.