Intentional Damage to Submarine Cable Systems by States
Two legal regimes—the law of the sea and the law on the use of force—can apply to damage caused by states to submarine cables during peacetime.
Published by The Lawfare Institute
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Submarine fiber optic cables carry 99 percent of all transoceanic digital communication. The 2022 attack on the Nord Stream pipeline and other recent developments have highlighted the vulnerability of undersea critical infrastructure. This paper examines two different legal regimes—the law of the sea and the law on the use of force—to ascertain the extent to which each applies to damage caused by states to submarine cables during peacetime.
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Dr. Tara Davenport is an assistant professor on the Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, where she coheads the Ocean Law and Policy Team at the Centre for International Law. She is also deputy director of the Asia-Pacific Centre for Environmental Law and co-rapporteur of the International Law Association’s Committee on Submarine Cables and Pipelines.
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