New Book Exposes Rising Threats to Undersea Cables and Pipelines

In "Undersea War," Elisabeth Braw documents a series of covert attacks on the global network of subsea cables and pipelines, focusing on repeat offenders like the Chinese cargo ship Yi Peng 3, which severed critical links in the Baltic Sea in November 2024. The narrative links these acts to a broader pattern of hybrid warfare carried out by Russian and Chinese actors, exploiting gaps in the 1884 Paris Convention that limit enforcement against foreign-registered vessels.

Braw cites other sabotage cases, from mysterious fires at European weapons plants to a Romanian Air Force engagement with a hostile robotic boat near a Black Sea gas platform. She stresses that the undersea infrastructure—millions of miles of cables and thousands of miles of pipelines—underpins daily digital transactions and energy supplies, making it a vulnerable target. While legal remedies are weak, the author suggests building redundant pathways as the most practical mitigation. The book warns that continued attacks could disrupt essential services, though a full-scale conflict has yet to emerge.