Britain toughens penalties for damaging undersea communications amid Russian sabotage

The British government has proposed prison sentences of up to 14 years and unlimited fines for the deliberate damage of undersea cables and pipelines, amid growing threats of hybrid attacks. Source: The Record

The proposed bill replaces an 1885 statute and covers backbone telecommunications networks, electricity interconnectors and gas pipelines, which carry 99% of international data and three-quarters of the country’s natural gas supplies. The new rules provide for up to 14 years in prison for deliberate sabotage, up to 10 years for damage caused recklessly, and up to two years for negligence.

The British authorities and the Ministry of Defence stress that the need for tougher penalties stems from the active operations of Russian intelligence ships and submarines detected near undersea infrastructure. The Royal Navy previously tracked a vessel belonging to Russia’s Main Directorate of Deep-Sea Research (GUGI) as it mapped cable routes north of Britain in preparation for possible sabotage. The bill also gives the government special powers to issue binding directives to communications operators in the interests of national security and regulate the use of seabed fibre-optic monitoring sensors.

Experts note that physical sabotage of undersea communications has become one of the key tools of hybrid warfare, capable of causing enormous economic damage and disrupting the West’s digital systems. The damage to the Estlink 2 cable between Finland and Estonia, which cost tens of millions of euros to repair, is cited as an example. Public consultations on the new rules to protect critical infrastructure will run until January 2027, after which the legislative proposals will be submitted to the UK Parliament for final approval.

Recall that Britain discovered Russian sensors for tracking submarines.