Russia's sole optical fiber production plant, “Optical Fiber Systems” in Saransk city, has been out of operation since May 2025 due to a series of Ukrainian drone attacks, The Moscow Times wrote on February 26. The plant, which produced approximately 4 million kilometers of optical fiber annually. A shortage of fiber-optic cable equipment is blamed on AI data center demands as well as US protectionism. Warnings about a US fiber crunch that could slow down broadband deployment have intensified since the summer. In August, Incab America, a Texan maker of fiber-optic cable, notified customers. Ukrainian deep-strike drones hit Russian fiber-optic and explosives factories on the night of April 4. The strikes targeted factories in Samara and Mordovia oblasts.