A policy brief published on 11 August 2025 by Medhaansh Ghosh highlights the critical importance of securing undersea communication cables that carry about 99% of global internet traffic and digital economic transactions. The brief critiques the fragmented governance of these cables in the EU, noting national disparities such as France and Portugal focusing on naval operations and Denmark delegating security to private industry, which poses risks to collective EU security. It further points out bureaucratic siloing among EU agencies like EMSA, ENISA, and Frontex, and calls for a cohesive approach integrating digital and physical domains. The report underscores growing vulnerability due to outdated international law (UNCLOS) and increasing involvement of non-EU tech and private actors. It makes six key policy recommendations including forming a dedicated EU body combining agencies and stakeholders, mandatory threat assessments by member states, coordinating with NATO, embedding cable diplomacy in bilateral relations with Egypt, Morocco, and the UK, and advocating revisions to UNCLOS to address contemporary threats and enforcement gaps.

A policy brief published on 11 August 2025 by Medhaansh Ghosh highlights the critical importance of securing undersea communication cables that carry about 99% of global internet traffic and digital economic transactions. The brief critiques the fragmented governance of these cables in the EU, noting national disparities such as France and Portugal focusing on naval operations and Denmark delegating security to private industry, which poses risks to collective EU security. It further points out bureaucratic siloing among EU agencies like EMSA, ENISA, and Frontex, and calls for a cohesive approach integrating digital and physical domains. The report underscores growing vulnerability due to outdated international law (UNCLOS) and increasing involvement of non-EU tech and private actors. It makes six key policy recommendations including forming a dedicated EU body combining agencies and stakeholders, mandatory threat assessments by member states, coordinating with NATO, embedding cable diplomacy in bilateral relations with Egypt, Morocco, and the UK, and advocating revisions to UNCLOS to address contemporary threats and enforcement gaps.