DE-CIX adds three-route gateway linking Middle East & Europe

DE-CIX has completed a three-route gateway linking the Middle East, the Balkans and Central Europe. The network gives operators three westbound paths to Frankfurt via Istanbul, Sofia and Athens.

The new set-up includes backbone connectivity between BIX.BG in Sofia and DE-CIX Frankfurt, as well as a direct connection between Sofia and DE-CIX Istanbul. Together with existing routes from Istanbul and Athens, these links create geographically separate options for traffic moving towards Central Europe.

Route diversity has become more important for network operators as disruption has affected both subsea and terrestrial infrastructure. The arrangement is designed to let operators switch traffic between routes if one path becomes congested or unavailable.

According to DE-CIX, the three paths offer different latency profiles, with access to Frankfurt from Istanbul in under 40 milliseconds, from Sofia in under 35 milliseconds and from Athens in under 50 milliseconds. The backbone routes were built with geo-redundancy and non-overlapping paths to reduce the risk of a single local incident cutting connectivity.

Regional links

For networks in the Middle East, the new connection between Istanbul and Sofia also changes the content map. More content from the Balkan hub is now directly available in Istanbul, with connectivity between the two cities in under 12 milliseconds, DE-CIX said.

This is particularly relevant for internet service providers serving users of digital media and online games, where delays can affect service quality. Turkish and Middle Eastern providers can use the route to lower latency for end customers, according to the company.

DE-CIX has operated in the Middle East and Türkiye for more than a decade and runs six exchanges across the region. DE-CIX Istanbul connects 70 networks and carries peak traffic of 613 Gbit/s, according to the company.

Frankfurt access

The new links also extend access from the Balkans into Frankfurt, one of Europe's main interconnection hubs. Networks connected to BIX.BG can now reach cloud services in Frankfurt and use DE-CIX's exchange and cloud routing services from Bulgaria.

For internet service providers in the eastern Balkans, this creates another route to enterprise cloud and AI workloads hosted in Central Europe. DE-CIX said the arrangement provides lower-latency, more resilient connectivity for business customers using those services.

BIX.BG connects 136 networks and handles more than 1.3 Tbit/s in peak traffic. DE-CIX is now a major stakeholder in the Sofia exchange, expanding its position in the Balkans alongside DE-CIX Athens.

Athens remains part of the broader route mix through its links across the East Mediterranean. The exchange serves as an entry point into Europe for traffic arriving from the Black Sea, the Red Sea and the Mediterranean basin through subsea cable systems.

Infrastructure focus

The latest expansion comes as operators place greater weight on resilience in network design. Damage or outages on a single cable system or corridor can affect multiple countries, particularly regions that depend on a limited number of international routes.

By adding a Sofia path to the existing Istanbul and Athens options, DE-CIX is increasing the number of distinct corridors available to networks that need access to Frankfurt. Frankfurt is the company's largest exchange location in Europe and one of the world's biggest interconnection points, with almost 20 Tbit/s of peak traffic and close to 1,100 connected networks.

Ivo Ivanov, Chief Executive Officer at DE-CIX, outlined the company's view of the project's role in the region. "The future of the digital economy depends on resilient, diverse, and seamlessly interconnected infrastructure," he said.

"The East Mediterranean Gateway marks another important step in our mission to bring networks, clouds, and digital services closer to users worldwide. By linking the Middle East, the Balkans, and Europe through multiple redundant routes, we are enhancing digital resilience, supporting economic development, and enabling the next generation of cloud and AI-driven services across the region," Ivanov said.