On October 30, 2024, the CSIS Institute (USA) published an analysis article on China's growing influence in maritime ports across the so-called “Global South”. The article argues that China uses its own digital port management system named LOGINK (currently used by at least 24 ports worldwide) to access confidential information about maritime transport at those sites, thereby serving the purpose of economic and military intelligence.

This argument is not new from the US. Since at least 2021, the US media and observers have warned of this risk. In 2023, US Congress passed a law prohibiting the US Department of Defense from accessing any seaport using LOGINK worldwide.

Information security risks are not the only issue that concerns the West. Some other commentators have pointed out that: (i) China can shape the "rules of the game" in the field of port management in the digital space; (ii) China can use the information advantage from LOGINK to coerce or disrupt others’ trade activities for other political purposes; (iii) LOGINK is just one piece of the puzzle, as China also uses offshore cranes, seaport engineering and transportation enterprises such as ZPMC or COSCO, etc. to dominate the maritime logistics sector.

However, the above articles have not exploited the strengths of LOGINK, including low cost (almost free), wide coverage (many US allies such as Japan, South Korea, Germany or UAE have adopted the system), friendly interface and suitability with the development trend of green - digital seaports. Concerns about LOGINK are also not clearly proven with empirical evidence.

Some opinions from China also suggest that the US should invest in its own system to attract partners if it wants to compete with LOGINK instead of criticizing Chinese system, or the US also has maritime service systems that can be used to access users’ information.

What do NCBĐ readers think about this issue?

An original version of the article was published here.
Translated by HD.

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202312/1304288.shtml

https://www.uscc.gov/sites/default/files/2022-09/LOGINK-Risks_from_Chinas_Promotion_of_a_Global_Logistics_Management_Platform.pdf?fbclid=IwY2xjawG07QZleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHdkX98qQHDCbkzHFXbQZujo5JcqTabfTlbqN7hNPR1edmPnwUd5Mb8fPNg_aem_zcyB-VIw3owLlYx_q8ynhw

https://www.csis.org/analysis/responding-chinas-growing-influence-ports-global-south?fbclid=IwY2xjawG07R5leHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHehc6pzhyfZWb3sDWG3WLNIDmfwUixeusjbtFEtCOMsDJQDZgKvKXhp24w_aem_zQpVvRnFPPhy6Om5iERGnQ

https://www.business-standard.com/world-news/us-congress-bars-pentagon-from-utilising-chinese-port-logistics-platform-123122200177_1.html?fbclid=IwY2xjawG07Q5leHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHR-Pw6Xi7ij4uaqss0l0NI7hpYbghpTGgwsCV35jRYKQZA34M5sq9D-IpA_aem_G-xNJs3hvGwzIqoktSrPtg

https://www.wsj.com/articles/chinas-growing-access-to-global-shipping-data-worries-u-s-11640001601?fbclid=IwY2xjawG07RFleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHRC7rw1W7zDkZm5ovnUjA6XlFbLHcZaqlYjATzNIUDz3OwrRds_oocaObg_aem_b4nMn8zaLSZQ8TYgxOciig