On Friday, May 24, the Sejong Institute hosted a tabletop exercise on “Digital Connectivity Under Threat: Attacks on Undersea Cables and Countermeasures”. 

The meeting analyzed the growing number of intentional attacks on submarine communications cables, which account for more than 95 percent of the international telecommunications network, and discussed the potential conflicts and implications of submarine cables in the Indo-Pacific region from a security perspective. The meeting also explored ways to build transnational cooperation and global governance on protection and recovery measures against attacks on submarine cables, which can occur for various purposes and in various forms. 

In particular, the possibility that attacks on submarine cables could lead to international eavesdropping, data theft, and interference with military communications was discussed from a cybersecurity perspective, and countermeasures were discussed. Finally, the possibility that an intentional attack on a submarine cable in the Indo-Pacific region could lead to a military crisis in the region was also discussed, as well as ways to coordinate among regional allies and partner countries to control the crisis.