EU, Southeast Asia look for ways to protect undersea cables – DW – 06/09/2025
The world's undersea cable network spans roughly 1.4 million kilometers (870,000 miles) and carries over 95% of intercontinental internet traffic, yet it remains vulnerable to accidental damage, such as ship anchors, and deliberate disruption.
Recent incidents in the Baltic and Red Seas have underscored the cables' fragility as policymakers staged international initiatives to safeguard the system.
"We need to work together to defend the entire network," Singaporean Minister of Defense Chan Chun Sing said at the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia's premier security forum, earlier this month.
"There's no point trying to defend the integrity and security of a submarine cable by looking at a point. We need both ends to be secure," he added.
NATO nations patrol Baltic Sea as cables fail
In February 2024, multiple cables in the Red Sea were severed when anchors from a cargo vessel sunk by Houthi militants dragged along the seabed. The damage caused a sharp reduction in internet capacity between Europe and Asia, disrupting everything from financial transactions to video conferencing.
Meanwhile, Europe has struggled with a series of similar faults in the Baltic Sea, with many Western officials hinting those cables were intentionally damaged by Russia-linked ships. Experts warn, however, that there is no proof of deliberate damage.
Estonia steps up patrols after undersea cable attack
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Since January, some NATO members have expanded deployments of frigates, maritime patrol aircraft and naval drones to conduct regular cable-surveillance missions across vital waterways.
Beijing using cable projects as leverage in naval disputes
In Southeast Asia, subsea infrastructure also faces similar geopolitical friction. In February, Taiwanese officials detained a Chinese-crewed ship after an undersea communications cable was damaged near the self-ruled island, which China sees as a breakaway province. China has also increasingly pressured cable consortia laying new links from Japan through the South China Sea to seek Beijing's "permission," effectively doubling down on its claims in internationally disputed waters.
Telecommunication cables are also a linchpin of global trade Image: submarinecablemap.com
"This is just another way that China is trying to assert its sovereignty over the South China Sea," Zachary Abuza, professor at the National War College in Washington, told DW.
China is also reportedly developing "advanced cable-cutting devices capable of targeting armored cables at unprecedented depths," according to a commentary published by Tokyo-based magazine Nikkei Asia this week.
Southeast Asian nations are also worried about the cables being threatened by natural disasters, and possibly costing them access to new and expanded renewable energy projects, such as offshore wind farms.
According to Nikkei Asia, investment in the submarine power cable sector is projected to reach $1.95 billion (€1.70) by 2030.
Hanoi 'cautious not to anger China'
Vietnam, a nation of 90 million people served by just five undersea cables, lost up to 75% of its data capacity in February 2023 when all five suffered partial or total damage. In June last year, three of the five submarine internet cables failed again.
Europe's undersea cables under attack?
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The cause for those disruptions is still unclear, at least officially. Alexander Vuving, a professor at the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies in Honolulu, told DW that Hanoi is "cautious not to anger China and tend to dismiss the suspicion that the cables were intentionally damaged."
"They argue that the cables are located in one of the world's busiest shipping routes, hence the chance that fishing vessels unintentionally damage them is high," Vuving added.
"However, this argument leaves unanswered the question of why the rate of incidents rose sharply in recent years."
EU as a way out of US-China clinch
Vietnam wants to add up to four new cables in the coming years to significantly boost connectivity speeds and the power supply as the country looks to progress into higher-end, tech manufacturing.
Hanoi has encouraged Vietnamese telecom companies to spearhead this move. However, laying cables across the ocean floor is costly, and Vietnamese firms are looking for outside investment, mainly from China and the US.
"Many in Vietnam see this as a no-win situation as they do not want to be dependent on either China or the US and certainly do not want to get entangled in the US-China competition," Vuving told DW.
"European companies can help Vietnam escape this Catch-22 situation. The same can be said regarding other countries in Southeast Asia."
Brussels working on 'cable diplomacy'
France's Alcatel Submarine Networks is often regarded as the global leader in subsea cable installation, and several European firms operate sizeable fleets of cable repair ships.
In February, the EU published its Action Plan on Cable Security, which called on Brussels to "develop and deploy an advanced cable diplomacy."
"When it comes to addressing incidents," the plan reads, "the [EU] should enhance the exchange of information with, for instance, Indo Pacific partners who are facing similar incidents in relation to critical submarine infrastructures."
Undersea cable damage leads to internet blackouts in Africa
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Soon thereafter, Henna Virkkunen, the European Commission's executive vice president in charge of security, announced that almost €1 billion is being redirected in the EU's budget to boost surveillance of undersea cables and establish a fleet of emergency repair vessels.
Does US want Europeans in Asia?
Whether Europe is actually capable of supporting Asia is another matter.
"While Europeans could help build more undersea cable architecture for Southeast Asia, China already dominates the undersea cable network in the region," Joshua Kurlantzick, senior fellow for Southeast Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations, told DW.
"It would take a massive and very costly effort by Europe to come anywhere near supplanting China's cable network, and I don't think Europe can afford that," he added.
German frigate completes passage through South China Sea
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Moreover, there could be pushback from the US, which appears to increasingly believe that Europeans should disengage from the Indo-Pacific region.
Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue summit earlier this month, US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth argued that European states should limit their engagement and investments in regions like Southeast Asia to focus entirely on safeguarding Europe.
Kaja Kallas, the EU's foreign policy chief, pushed back a day later, arguing that "it's an illusion that these security theaters of Indo-Pacific and Europe are not interlinked."
She called for Europe and Asia to collaborate against covert "shadow fleets" and review maritime security laws to protect submarine cable networks.
Edited by: Darko Janjevic
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After the new German government resumed deportations to Afghanistan this week, Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul has floated a similar approach for Syria – despite the current unrest in the war-torn country. "It's possible that, in future, Syrians who have committed criminal offenses [could be] deported," he told the newspaper. "I think that's possible in principle – provided the country develops in [the right] direction." Southern Syria has been rocked by violence again this week, with the new Islamist-led regime in Damascus struggling to prevent clashes between Druze and Bedouin factions in Sweida and powerless to stop Israeli intervention. Hundreds of people have reportedly been killed. "We are watching Syria with concern," said Wadephul, calling on the interim government under Ahmed al-Sharaa to ensure that all sections of the population and all religious groups can co-exist. "No-one should have to fear for life and limb," he said. "But as it stands, we are of the opinion that we have to give this interim government a chance." Germany spectacularly reached the semi-final of the Women's Euro 2025 on Saturday night, beating France 6-5 on penalties despite having been reduced to ten players for the majority of the evening. Kathrin Hendrich was sent off in the 13th minute for tugging on an opponent's hair in the penalty area, after which Grace Geyoro gave France the lead from the penalty spot. But Sjoeke Nüsken headed Germany level just nine minutes later. What followed was 100 minutes of defensive attrition from Germany to somehow reach extra-time and then penalties, where goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger was the heroine. Germany will face Spain in the semifinal on Wednesday. The other semifinal sees defending champions England play Italy. Read DW's full match report here. German police on Saturday shot dead a man who had fired shots at passersby and neighboring buildings in the small town of Leonberg, just west of the city of Stuttgart in the southwestern state of Baden-Württemberg. Local police and state prosecutors said the 44-year-old German man had indiscriminately fired shots from the second floor of his house, fortunately injuring nobody. When armed police entered his apartment, he reportedly threatened officers with his weapon and was subsequently shot. Police secured the weapon which turned out to be a non-lethal gas pistol. Whether or not this was the weapon used to fire the shots from the house was not immediately clear. The state criminal police office (LKA) is also investigating the police's use of firearms in the operation. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Saturday honored the Central Council of Jews in Germany for its role in society on the 75th anniversary of its founding. "Jewish life is a part of us," wrote Merz on the messaging platform X, adding that the organization reminds everyone in the country of something "that should be obvious: Germany must be a safe space for Jews." Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier also honored the day, saying that he was "deeply thankful" that the organization's first leaders had determined to "rebuild Jewish life in Germany in the aftermath of the Shoah ." Steinmeier said that beyond not letting Germany forget the crimes of its Nazi past and fighting antisemitism, the Central Council of Jews in Germany served as "an important driving force behind the democratic development of German society after 1945." The institution, which functions as Germany's main political, societal and religious representative for Jews in the country, was founded on July 19, 1950, in Frankfurt — just five years after the end of World War II and the industrial-scale murder of more than six million European Jews at the hands of Germany's Nazi dictatorship. Today the council comprises some 105 communities and associations, and 100.000 individual view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video A majority of Germans have opposed banning the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), according to a new poll. The survey by the Allensbach Institute, published Saturday by , found that 52% of respondents reject a ban on the party, while 27% support it. In eastern Germany, two-thirds of those surveyed said they were against such a move. According to the researchers, one key reason is that many Germans know AfD supporters personally. In the West, 67% said they had AfD sympathizers in their social circles; in the East, that figure rose to 88%. While 54% of respondents described the AfD as far-right, only 5% viewed their acquaintances who back the party in the same way. Another factor behind the opposition to a ban is mistrust toward the parties advocating it. Many respondents suspect those parties are mainly trying to eliminate a political rival that has grown too strong. The idea of a ban is divisive within Germany's governing coalition. The center-left Social Democratic Party voted unanimously at its June 29 party congress to prepare proceedings and called for a federal-state working group. The center-right Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union has pushed back, citing steep legal hurdles and urging a focus on political argument. Two parties have been banned in (West) Germany, an openly neo-Nazi party in 1952 and the Communist Party (KPD) in 1956. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Around half of eligible voters in Germany have said they agree with the federal government's view that Russia poses a danger to the country, according to a new YouGov poll for Germany's DPA news agency. The survey found that 13% see a very serious military threat from Moscow, while 36% consider it a significant one. By contrast, 30% say Russia poses only a minor threat, and 14% see no threat at all. The divide is sharp along political party lines. Among supporters of the conservative CDU/CSU bloc, center-left Social Democrats, and the Greens, 58–62% view Russia as a major or very serious threat. About one-third of these party groups see little or no danger. The picture flips among far-right Alternative for Germany voters, where 65% say there is little or no military threat from Russia, while 29% see one. Among supporters of the populist left Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance, only 33% see a threat, while 51% do not. Supporters of the socialist Left party are evenly split — 48% see a threat, 47% do not. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video German consumers are paying more for meat — and prices are still climbing this summer. And while retail costs rise, producers of Germany's favorite meat, pork, face falling returns. According to the Agricultural Market Information Company (AMI) in Bonn, average discount supermarket prices for a 400-gram pack of minute steaks increased by 30 cents in early July, from €3.49 to €3.79 ($4.06 to $4.41). The price for coarse pork sausages rose from €2.59 to €2.89, and a 550-gram pack of chicken schnitzel went up 30 cents to €6.26. Meat and meat product prices have steadily risen in recent years. The Federal Statistical Office reports that, by June, they were on average 31.7% higher than in 2020. Poultry had risen by more than 45%, and minced beef by over 68%. The German Meat Industry Association cites several causes: general inflation, rising feed costs, wage increases, and energy policy impacts. Beef has become scarcer in Germany. According to the industry association, more farms are ending cattle production, citing regulatory pressure and uncertainty about future farming standards. The result has been shrinking herds. Meanwhile, poultry consumption is rising. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video German media have begun scrutinizing the government's latest deportation flights to Afghanistan, questioning whether the men truly fit the label of dangerous criminals. One of the 81 men deported on Friday was Haroon I., 27, who was escorted from a facility in Pforzheim under heavy police presence late on Thursday. Footage of the scene, obtained by , shows the emotional moment. The report said the man was a convicted cannabis dealer who had already served his sentence. People close to him say he had been rebuilding his life and was well on his way to integrating into German society. said that Haroon had strong German, was living with his partner, a German woman, had a job and was a member of his community. He also had little connection to Afghanistan with most of his family having left the country. The convoy was guarded by police in balaclavas who kept back friends and supporters. Pforzheim was one of the departure points for the new round of deportations to Afghanistan ordered by Germany's centrist coalition. A plane carrying the men left Leipzig airport early on Friday. The government has said it is delivering on a campaign pledge to deport people to Afghanistan and Syria, starting with criminals and people posing a perceived risk. After the deportations, the United Nations said no one should be returned to Afghanistan, regardless of their legal status.
