But, as we know, 2021 knows how to present surprises. And yesterday's statement by the Trump administration about the Clean Network project is one of those, I must say, not the most pleasant surprises. We know that the US trade war with China began quite a long time ago, and during its time many aggressive and large-scale actions have already been taken. For example, you can remember the defeat of ZTE in 2017. But then, nevertheless, some diplomatic decency was observed, and the steps taken were quite specific, as well as formal grounds.

In this sense, the Clean Network project is reaching a new level. There is very little specifics in it, but the intentions are quite frank and are no longer covered up with any diplomatic formulations. Yesterday we published five key messages from Mike Pompeo that reveal the essence of this project. In short, on the doors of the American IT market there will be a sign that says "Chinese are not allowed". And this applies not only to the supply of equipment, but in general to everything that the authors of the grandiose plan were able to come up with. From a ban on roaming with Chinese mobile operators to Chinese applications in American stores.

In general, the most interesting situation is with applications and services. It seems that it was they who served as the trigger for the exacerbation. To be more precise, we are talking about two parallel stories. The first, and most important for the United States, is the upcoming elections, which have become the cause of internal political confrontation in America, sometimes reaching madness. Social networks have become one of the main instruments of this conflict, as you know. Which, of course, led to the fact that unprecedented pressure from both sides began to be exerted on the owners of social networks, the platforms began to become politicized, and there can be no more talk of neutrality.

On the other hand, a new player has appeared on the global market, very popular among young people and showing unattainable growth rates for others. Yes, we are talking about Tik Tok followers, the social network of the Chinese holding ByteDance. It was the popularity among young people and the billion-dollar audience of this service that made American corporations nervous. Everyone understands that young people will grow up and for them, their grandfather Facebook can become something like what Usenet or IRC is for the modern audience.

Therefore, Trump's threats against Tik Tok are not at all related to the fact that there is someone posting satirical videos addressed to him and undermining his rating. Such interpretations can be found even in the relatively serious American press, but this is nothing more than pre-election manipulation. In reality, Tik Tok is not as politicized as they say, rather, on the contrary. In addition, many users have not yet reached the age that allows them to take part in elections.

In fact, the skin of the not yet killed Tik Tok, thrown at the feet of American IT giants, is an attempt by the Trump administration to demonstrate the carrot, along with the whip that was shown a little earlier at the Senate hearings.

Another thing is that the "Clean Network" plan will begin to live a life of its own, regardless of the outcome of the US elections, the wishes of American politicians or the IT business. This is how all such initiatives work. Therefore, it is still difficult to say what impact this plan will have on global telecommunications. Some hope is given by the fact that it is extremely vague and declarative. But it is quite possible that after a while the world of tunnels, regional accounts and multiple IDs will become commonplace not only for a narrow layer of geeks.