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According to a recent report by the Policy Exchange think tank, the world's communication network is comprised of around 213 independent cable systems and 545,018 miles of fiber, as seen in the image above. Air Chief Marshal Stuart Peach says Britain and NATO must prioritize the defense of the undersea lines of communication against a potential Russian attack, as cutting or disrupting them could cause an economic catastrophe.
Because the cables do not have formal state ownership, they are quite vulnerable in international law. Also, an international power such as NATO needs to act because these cable systems are too extensive to be protected by any single nation. This is in response to increased Russian submarine activity and their willingness to use unconventional warfare. The potential effects of wire-tapping, cutting, or disrupting these networks could be disastrous according to many experts, including MP Rishi Sunak and Admiral James Stavridis, NATO's former top military chief.
Ultimately, we must remember that any Russian plot is only speculation for now. Admiral Stavridis even warned of potential threats from China and Iran. However, in the possibility of Russia's navy acting on these economically and socially vital cable networks, and in light of the ongoing accusations against President Trump for possibly colluding with Russia, what do you think the U.S. or NATO can, will, or won't do?
22 comments:
First off, woah! I did't know that. I question who knew that there were under water cables such as this? Was everyone else as clueless of me? I don't think that Russia, or any other nation would attack these cables, unless directly seeking war from all other countries. As I understand it these cables are necessary for transferring information from one country to another, and therefore are beneficial to all countries. I would think a country like North Korea would benefit more from their destruction. There probably is a pact that all countries signed to protect this natural benefit. So constant assurance in the form of a UN treaty would ensure safety of this information.
I don't think that Russia will actually attempt to disrupt the cable systems because it could have disastrous effects on the entire world's economy as financial transactions in the foreign exchange market would be disrupted. However, I think it is still possible that Russia will attack the cables, so NATO should take some sort of action so that the cables are protected.
I think since the cable system effects so many countries and so many people, Russia should be extremely open to working with the international community. Especially with all of the allegations of Russia messing with the US election, which is already a source of international tension, the international community should take this as an opportunity to work together.
I think that these cables are safe because not only would damaging them be starting a war with many countries, it would also be not be very beneficial to the country damaging them. I also think that making any regulation in fear of the Russian government cutting these would backfire because this would worsen the relations between the US and Russia, making further negotiation harder.
I think that NATO and other international organizations should step up to protect these cables. They may be safe for now, but no one knows what may happen in the future, and it's better to be safe than have the world economy disrupted. Russia is a possible threat, and however unlikely a plot to destroy the cables is, it's a good idea to protect them. Many countries are dependent on these cables, including Russia and China, so an attack seems improbable, but if they are so important, they should be protected in every way possible. NATO should ensure their safety, as it is their duty to keep the world safe and prevent international conflicts.
Due to the possible impact of purposeful cable damages, NATO should increase the security around them. However, I believe that the threat to these cables in minimal, due to the harsh implications of war for any country, specifically Russia, if they damage the cables. Even though Trump has been accused of collusion with Russia, I do not believe that the current administration would refrain from conflict if these cables are intentionally damaged.
We cannot justify any increases in defense or actions against Russia with mere speculation. Doing so would be a waste of time and resources, as well as aggravate existing hostilities with Russia. Thus, we must contact the Russian government directly in order to determine whether there is a real threat of economic sabotage. From there, NATO can discuss whether or not the wire system needs military protection or conduct negotiations with Russia.
I agree with Diana. As of now, Russia's so-called plot to disrupt these very important communication lines is just speculation. These "possible threats" are not good enough reasons to act out and damage the already tedious relationship with Russia. I believe Russia understands to how important these cables are, and I honestly cannot predict whether or not they would decide to attack them. However, knowing now how important these communication lines are, they should be protected nonetheless. Preventing is much better than dealing with the aftermath.
I also had no idea these existed and it baffles me that so many communication cables have been left unprotected for so long. It seems like something that most people would want to protect as soon as they were installed. Like most people have mentioned, I don't think Russia is likely to attack these communication lines. The consequence is likely going to be international backlash, and it doesn't seem like they would benefit from that. Furthermore, I don't really see how they could carry out a large scale. I'm not very clear about this, but it seems like on the map that there are communication lines everywhere around the world (with exception of Russia). It's unlikely that they can attack all the lines or even enough lines to make lasting damage before they are stopped. Unfortunately, this also looks like it might be problem for groups trying to protect the lines. NATO is the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, so at best, they only control the North Atlantic area. While the cables technically aren't owned by any state, I don't think other countries are going to appreciate NATO or any group interfering with their water territory even to protect the communication lines. So while I think ideally, it would be a good idea for someone to put up some protection around the communication cables, it seems unlikely for any group except maybe the UN to be allowed access to set up protection protocols.
I think it's important to recognize that these communication cables if disturbed, would cause more harm than good because it would involve more countries than just Russia. Since these communication lines have been undisturbed for quite some time now, disturbing them now wouldn't have any sort of benefit because it clearly would result in international disputes as Caroline mentioned. Also, as Arthur mentioned, Russian plots are speculation, and assuming that Russia is doing something suspicious wouldn't be accurate. As for the economy, I think that it would be greatly affected because companies like Google and Facebook invest in these communication cables and we depend on these platforms every day. This system is fast and reliable and is important to us emphasizing that more protection for the communication cables is needed.
This is a very interesting story. I think the communication cables need more security because the impact from these damages can cause havoc. I firmly believe that the best thing NATO can do is increase the security around them. It wouldn't make sense for them to leave these cables unchecked because it can cause a potential international threat. However, I can agree with Diana that this threat is merely a speculation as of right now, but you could never be too careful. that the threat to these cables in minimal, due to the harsh implications of war for any country, specifically Russia, if they damage the cables. I doubt that Russia, or any other country would attack these cables because that would created unwanted conflict which would then directly seek war from all other countries. Therefore it would be smart to deal with the situation as it is right now, so we could prevent a potential war.
I did not notice before that the communication lines did not extend to Russia as much as most other nations. Caroline's analysis seems quite accurate. Like many of the commentators in this thread, I did not really believe in direct Russian interference in these cables, as Russia wouldn't desire direct international confrontation. However, some points in the articles that I may have reported on too lightly may have been that Russia's navy and submarines have been unusually active, especially in the North Atlantic. Furthermore, one of the articles alluded to possible wiretapping of these cables. How possible this is, I do not know.
I doubt that even Russia may tamper with these cables given their obvious significance in world economy. However, if things get heated, they may threaten to mess with the cables which presents a need for a NATO/ UN plan to deal with such a contingency should the situation arise. The benefit of spending time to create a plan would far outweigh the cost of Russia actually following through on their threat which is already unlikely. I agree with Diana that collaboration with Russian government is crucial and that the international backlash over Russian actions is something that Russia can't endure economically.
I do not believe Russia will tamper or damage these cables but I do believe that these cables need more protection to prevent something like that from happening in the first place. I don't believe Russia will do anything because of their dependency on these cables and the effect they have on the economy. By disrupting them, Russia will not only be hurting every other county that use them but also themselves. I still believe President Trump should be trying to calm the situation through diplomatic talks to not take any chances.
As stated by many people before, I do not believe that Russia will tamper with any of these lines. This is because tampering with these lines will affect Russia as well. Even though not as many of these lines go into Russia as some other countries, disrupting these lines will cause economic downfall in ALL countries, including Russia themselves. If I were Russia, I would not see any benefit in attack these lines. I believe that increasing security of these lines might be a waste of money and time for NATO, who could be concentrating on other more pressing issues.
Russia won't tamper with these cables because that means there will be global catastrophes, such with the world economy and communication, which Russia is apart of and will negatively hurt them as well. They need this to communicate to Europe and the rest of the world. If I were NATO and/or the US, I would call Russia's bluff and play hard ball against them, because they don't want to start a war or any conflict, else it would hurt them economically and politically.
I agree with Justin because any tampering with these crucial cables will definitely have backlash on their own economy as well as any country who is or would ally with them and help them in this very speculative situation. To be honest, I don't understand why people are becoming so worried about Russia and their possible military threat. Putin riding shirtless on his horse is literally just him flexing his power to the rest of the world, nothing more. I think that any sort of military conflict between Russia and NATO or the US is extremely unrealistic and it should not be a priority of the US to prepare for such a situation. Of course, there is the fact that they most likely did meddle with our latest election, but in no way do I believe that this should be resolved with violence. Russia is the equivalent of an internet troll on the international scale just trying to be noticed and annoy people. You know what happens to trolls? They get kicked out of the server... What if somehow Russia got kicked out of the UN, or at least the Security Council? That could help things, or possibly make them worse.
I was reading some articles online and came upon this Foreign Policy article about Russian agents in California who are suspected to be looking into the nodes of fiber-optic cables both within the United States itself (not the underseas ones) and where the underseas cables come above ground on the West Coast of the United States. The article contained very worrying evidence that there is an effort by Russia, both through agents on the ground and surveillance flyovers, to at the very least locate the locations of the communications nodes. This could point to Russian efforts to meddle with communications both within the United States as well as with the underseas cables connecting countries across the Pacific Ocean. While the people above do not seem to think that Russia will tamper with anything, I think that there is the possibility of Russia tampering communications within the United States even if Russia does not attack the undersea cables.
I think that is a very risky proposition for Russia to attack the lines. It could lead to a major backlash from many candidates on the world stage. However, if they do attack it would be quite interesting to see Trump work with NATO. He has previously said that he wants to back out, and this could force the US to single handily take on Russia. Interesting and scary!
I think it is very important to protect these cable lines in order to maintain a secure international economy. Although it would be very risky and dangerous for Russia to attack these lines, and also unlikely due to the backlash and effect it would have on their own country, it is still possible they could attack, so NATO should do something to protect them. Since Trump has threatened to leave NATO and is known for having a close relationship with Putin, I am unsure what he would do in this situation. I personally think he should agree with whatever protection plan NATO has because it would be risky to let Russia have any opportunity to attack these cable lines. It would effect our own economy and put an even bigger target on Trump's back.
Due to the risks of attacking these cable lines I think it is unlikely that a country would attack them. Since the international political climate is always changing however it is probably good to have some protections put in place before anything escalates. To prevent any conflict there should be clear communication about how NATO intends to deal with these cable lines.
While the cables do not have direct protections, there is a sense of a social defence around them. If a country, such as Russia, would cut the cables many nations would be upset with this intentional act of sabotage. I don’t think that there is a guarantee of getting caught, but it seems unlikely that an aggressive nation could get away with malicious actions related to the cables. If they are caught, a large collection of nations would be upset, and then would most likely take diplomatic actions against the aggressors. No nation would want the repercussions for the little benefits of spying on or cutting the cables.
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