The report from the Inaugural Valentia Island Symposium on Subsea Cable Security and Resilience, held from October 10-12, 2024, was launched at the European Maritime Day Event in Cork City. This unique Symposium brought together Irish and international experts from industry, academia, and government to address critical issues related to submarine telecommunications cables. Hosted at the historic Valentia Island Transatlantic Cable Station, a symbol of global communication and innovation, the Symposium provided a unique setting to reflect on the historical, political, social, economic, and technological dimensions of subsea cable security and resilience.

Subsea Cable Security and Resilience

Growing digital dependencies as well as recent geopolitical tensions and the concurrent climate crisis have placed the topic of critical infrastructure protection at the top of policy, industry and research agendas. This includes subsea telecommunications cables, across which over 99 percent of transcontinental data traffic transits and upon which countries across the globe increasingly rely as they continue to digitally transform their economies and societies

The report describes several recurring themes central to the discussion on subsea cable security and resilience including;

Geopolitical tensions affecting the subsea cable ecosystem.

The need for public-private engagement at sea and on land as the subsea cable industry owns and operates most cable systems, while at the same time, governments are responsible for national security and the delivery of essential services.

The critical role of technology in both public and private efforts to ensure the resilience and security of subsea cables systems.

The Valentia Transatlantic Cable Foundation was proud to host this not-for-profit event at the place from where the first transatlantic cable was laid over 150 years ago. The event was run in collaboration with a team of Irish and international researchers as well as global industry actors, and with the generous support of AquaComms, Ireland's Departments of Foreign Affairs and Defence, the IDA, Aurora, Philip Lee, Analysys Mason and the European Subsea Cables Association (ESCA).

The report is available at https://www.valentiacable.com/event/cable-symposium/

Over three days of presentations, thematic panels and side events, recognized experts in the field examined historical continuities and discontinuities in key security and resilience questions; how security and resilience come together in national policy; current policy and practice in identifying and responding to subsea cable-related incidents; how industry and government are adapting to the current geopolitical environment; core characteristics of the cable repair eco-system and related challenges; technology's contribution to security and resilience of the systems; and current and future policy and regulatory issues.

Several recurring themes central to the discussion on subsea cable security and resilience are evident. Principle among them is the growing complexity of the regulatory environment at a time when, for both resilience and security purposes, regulation needs to be more streamlined and predictable, attuned to shifting cable ownership models, as well as better coordinated and harmonised across connected countries, while also meeting one of its primary aims, which is to prevent and mitigate risks that could negatively impact individuals, communities, or entire societies. Many governments are working towards these goals within a broader framework of critical infrastructure protection.

Second, as in the past, geopolitical tensions affect the subsea cable ecosystem. They influence the geographies of the physical network and spill over into regulation and an ever-broadening number of policy areas, at national, regional and international levels. Ensuring the availability of the systems and of fleets and supply chains is a concern of both industry and government. It requires vario...