Since the beginning of the Russian offensive in Ukraine, the West has taken a significant number of sanctions once morest Russia. Vladimir Putin subsequently warned Westerners “who would try to interfere”, that “Russia’s response will be immediate and will lead to consequences you have never experienced before”.
Westerners expected an avalanche of Russian cyberattacks once morest Ukraine, and even once morest them, as Russia is recognized as one of the world’s great cyber-offensive powers. For example, an attack which would aim to cut off the electricity of the city of Marseilles or to deprive Dallas of gas would constitute an aggression entering potentially within the framework of Article 5 of NATO.
Another response dreaded by Europe is an internet shutdown… across the continent. Indeed, it is submarine cables that provide almost all of the world’s internet traffic. The SWIFT system, for example, from which several Russian banks have been excluded, is one of the most important interbank platforms and also passes through these information highways. A cut in these cables, which are no thicker than garden hoses, would therefore have catastrophic consequences for Europe.
In 2014, Russia had already cut cables during the annexation of Crimea. In addition, Russian military ships have been spotted for several months near the cables, particularly off the Irish coast. Events that further push the West to take this threat seriously.
At the end of February, a few days following the start of the Russian offensive, Ukraine also asked Elon Musk to urgently deploy its network of Starlink internet satellites above the country, which was done a few hours later. .
