RUSSIAN THREATS TO THE SUBMARINE INTERNET CABLE INFRASTRUCTURE

Abstract

The article outlines the importance of undersea communication cables, an under-researched andoften underappreciated element of modern geopolitics, security and Internet resilience.The purpose of the article is to analyse the increased Russian naval activity in recent years arounddeep-sea cables, the critical infrastructure of the global Internet, which has the potential to disruptthe daily life of the West as Russia seeks new means of influencing the West during the war againstUkraine.As there is currently not yet enough scientific research on the topic, the article uses newspaperanalytical materials and various reports in addition to scientific articles. Given the nature andpurpose of the considerations, the assumption was made to use a diverse research methodology,at the basis of which were the following methods: historical, institutional-legal, monographic anddocument analysis.The conclusion of the article is that, as the world is heavily dependent on undersea cablesthat carry Internet traffic around the world, the Russian Federation will continue to threateninformation systems, and their damage may not only adversely affect the state of intercontinentalcommunications, but also worsen the geopolitical situation on a global scale.