Research on the international legal regulation of willful or culpably negligent damage to submarine cables

Abstract International submarine cables support vital global interests, carrying huge volumes of international communications traffic, and states are becoming increasingly reliant on them. Against a backdrop of escalating international competition, both traditional and non-traditional security risks to these cables have increased markedly. Conversely, the relevant legal framework remains underdeveloped and inadequate to address the risks of willful or culpably negligent damage to international submarine cables located in exclusive economic zones, on the continental shelf, and on the high seas. This study analyzes the two main categories of perpetrators of willful or culpably negligent damage to submarine cables—states or state-sponsored actors and non-state actors—and the associated challenges to international law. It examines the deficiencies in the relevant international law across three dimensions: Jurisdiction, standards for establishing offenses, and liability for compensation. Building on this analysis, the study proposes avenues for refining the corresponding international legal regulations in three key areas: Improving jurisdictional models, clarifying the definition of offenses and their constituent elements and standards, and establishing victim complaint channels.