Almost all global internet communications travel through a network of undersea cables. If those cables were to be cut, it would serve a devastating blow to Western governments, citizens, and the estimated $10 trillion worth of global business carried daily by the cables. The idea of such an attack has the U.S. worried, as The New York Times reports that Russian submarines and spy ships are "aggressively operating" near the vital undersea cables.
Though Russia hasn't actually cut any cables, one commander of a Navy submarine fleet told The New York Times that he's "worried every day about what the Russians may be doing." Just last month, one Russian ship with two deep-sea submersible craft was spotted slowly sailing by the location of one major cable.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstancesSpeed Read
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2Speed Read
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governorSpeed Read
-
Los Angeles city workers stage 1-day walkout over labor conditionsSpeed Read
-
Mega Millions jackpot climbs to an estimated $1.55 billionSpeed Read
-
Bangladesh dealing with worst dengue fever outbreak on recordSpeed Read
-
Glacial outburst flooding in Juneau destroys homesSpeed Read
-
Scotland seeking 'monster hunters' to search for fabled Loch Ness creatureSpeed Read
