Ireland fears undersea cables face growing threat from ‘malign actors’

Résumé détaillé

Home to many US tech multinationals, Ireland raises alarm over Russia's so-called shadow fleet.

Wexford, Ireland – They cross the ocean floor between continents, carrying nearly all our data, from messages and calls to trillions of dollars in financial transactions each day.

Subsea cables underpin global communications and power economies, but they are also increasingly seen as vulnerable to sabotage.

About 75 percent of transatlantic subsea cables pass through or near Irish waters, according to the Irish government, connecting North America with Europe – giving the small European Union member outsized strategic importance.

Ireland is also a major hub for United States tech multinationals, including Google, Microsoft and Meta, with a growing concentration of data centres supporting the digital economy.

But increased activity by Russian vessels near undersea infrastructure in recent years has raised concerns that cables around Ireland could become targets of interference.

In November 2024, the Russian ship Yantar, officially an oceanographic research vessel but described by the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence as a spy ship, was monitored near undersea infrastructure in the Irish Sea before being escorted out of Ireland’s exclusive economic zone by the Irish Navy.

Two months later, the UK’s Defence Ministry said the vessel had been “caught loitering over critical undersea infrastructure in UK waters.”

In late 2025, the British government accused Yantar of directing lasers at Royal Air Force (RAF) pilots monitoring its movements in the North Sea.

Ireland has limited capability to monitor its waters – it has the lowest defence spending as a share of gross domestic product (GDP) in the EU, and its navy has no submarines. It is militarily neutral and not part of NATO.

Début de l'article, extrait de Al Jazeera. Pour lire la suite, ouvrez l'article chez le média.