Taiwan Pushes Subsea Cable Reinforcement for Resilience
Taiwan Calls for Reinforced Subsea Cables as Part of National Connectivity Resilience Plan
By Telecom Review Asia
April 10, 2026
Taiwan’s Ministry of Digital Affairs (MODA) has called on telecommunications operators to deploy more resilient submarine cables, including systems buried deeper beneath the seabed and protected with steel armoring, as part of a broader strategy to safeguard critical communications infrastructure against disruption and potential sabotage.
The ministry has released its first comprehensive assessment of submarine cable damage, identifying anchor strikes as the leading cause of coastal cable faults. While most incidents were accidental, officials said the findings underscore the need to strengthen protection measures for infrastructure that supports Taiwan’s digital economy and national connectivity.
Speaking at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, Minister of Digital Affairs Lin Yi-jing said the government is advancing resilience initiatives through programs such as the Five Trusted Industry Sectors strategy and the 10 Major Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Projects initiative, both of which aim to reinforce system reliability across strategic digital platforms.
To strengthen deterrence and enforcement, MODA has coordinated with the National Communications Commission to amend Article 72 of the Telecommunications Management Act, strengthening penalties and enforcement mechanisms against deliberate damage to submarine cable infrastructure. The amendment took effect on January 5.
Taiwan is also encouraging domestic operators to participate in regional submarine cable systems, including the Southeast Asia-Japan 2 and Apricot networks, to enhance route diversity and international redundancy. Officials said participation in multilateral cable consortia would help reduce reliance on single-path connectivity and improve service continuity during outages.
At the domestic level, several new inter-island cable systems including the Taiwan-Matsu No. 4, Taiwan-Penghu No. 4, and Penghu-Kinmen No. 4 projects, all of which, according to MODA, are scheduled for completion this year. This further strengthens network resilience across offshore territories.
To support continuity during cable disruptions, the government is expanding subsidies for backup transmission solutions such as microwave links. Additional funding would also support early-warning monitoring platforms and accelerate cable repair response capacity.
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