Seventeen countries have agreed to a pact for defending critical marine infrastructure like undersea cables. Analysts suggest the absence of major powers like the US and China could limit the pact's effectiveness.

Seventeen countries have agreed to collaborate on defence strategies for critical marine infrastructure such as undersea cables, an effort that analysts warn may be undermined by the absence of superpower involvement. At the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on Saturday, defence ministers and representatives from these countries attended the launch of the Guiding Principles for Underwater Infrastructure Defence Exchanges (Guide), which aims to bring countries together to explore potential areas.....