As focus turns to China over Baltic cable damage, ITU moves to improve resilience

When two Baltic subsea cables were damaged a couple of weeks ago, initial suspicion understandably focused on Russia. But last week the Swedish Prime Minister formally asked China to cooperate in the investigation his country is leading, having learned that the Chinese cargo ship Yi Peng 3 had been hanging around the site of the damage at the time it took place. The current working assumption is that the damage was caused by a maliciously dragged anchor.

The ship is currently loitering in international waters in the Kattegat Strait, which links the Baltic and North seas. Sweden wants Yi Peng 3 to dock in one of its ports to help with the investigation. China has apparently said it will cooperate and the absence of an editorial hissy-fit from the Chinese state-controlled Global Times suggests the CCP has decided not to throw its toys out of the pram for now.

Russia is presumably not completely off the hook, however, since the the Yi Peng Three set sail on its controversial voyage from the Russian Baltic port of Ust-Luga. Given the current geopolitical climate, it’s certainly conceivable that Russia and China could collude to sabotage interests in the NATO sphere of influence.

But the two of them won’t have been counting on the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the International Cable Protection Committee (ICPC) forming a new advisory body designed to strengthen the resilience of submarine cables. Hilariously, given the timing, the new organisation insists it has been created to improve maintenance and ‘prevent damage from natural hazards and accidental human activities’.

“Submarine cables carry over 99 per cent of international data exchanges, making their resilience a global imperative," said ITU Secretary-General Doreen Bogdan-Martin. “The advisory body will mobilize expertise from around the world to ensure this vital digital infrastructure remains resilient in the face of disasters, accidents, and other risks." Other risks…

“The formation of this international advisory body with ITU marks another step toward safeguarding our global digital infrastructure," said ICPC Chair Graham Evans. “By working together, we can promote best practices, foster international collaboration, and create a consistent approach to protect the vital submarine cable networks that underpin global connectivity."

This isn’t the first time Russia and China have been suspected of mucking about with Baltic data cables, the previous incident taking place just over a year ago. A year before that, foul play was suspected in damage to some other European subsea cables. It’s not clear what geopolitical advantage might be gained from this annual piece of marine vandalism but surely they’ll think twice about attempting it again next autumn now they know there’s an advisory body on the case.