Join host Joey Chou as he dives into socio-economic issues faced by Taiwan, and their broader impact beyond the reefs of this island nation.

National security experts stress the need to enhance the resilience of undersea cables through inspections and preventative measures. They also advocate for a global punitive mechanism to deter deliberate infrastructure sabotage. The resilience of undersea cables was a key focus during the Taiwanese Presidential Office’s urban resilience exercises in December 2024 and is expected to remain central to the committee’s discussions in 2025. Are these isolated accidents, or are they part of a broader gray zone strategy?

Our guest today is Professor Benjamin Schmitt, a senior fellow at the University of Pennsylvania and former U.S. State Department advisor on European energy security, joins us to unpack this incident. He’ll share insights into the strategic importance of these cables and why the stakes are so high—not just for Taiwan but for nations worldwide.