Executive Vice-President Henna Virkkunen has presented new EU funding opportunities worth €20 million to protect Europe’s submarine cables.
New funding under the Digital Europe Programme will support the creation of regional cable hubs and stress-testing the resilience of undersea cable infrastructures. In particular, the European Cybersecurity Competence Centre – the EU Central hub for managing cybersecurity funds – is publishing a €10 million call dedicated to the establishment of regional cable hubs. These hubs will monitor threats, apply AI-based analysis for real-time detection, and enable faster incident response. The Nordic-Baltic region will host the first pilot hub.
In addition, a further €10 million call under the Cyber Solidarity Act recently opened, whose funds will boost preparedness and testing of critical infrastructure.
The Executive Vice-President also outlined the progress shown by the Cables Expert Group report, published today, in strengthening Europe’s security and resilience of critical submarine cables. The report maps existing and planned infrastructures, assesses risks, and sets stress-testing guidelines. It is a key objective of the EU Action Plan on Cable Security, adopted in February 2025, which covers the full resilience cycle – prevention, detection, response, recovery and deterrence.
To support the pivotal role submarine cables play in maintaining reliable digital connectivity, the EU has already invested €420 million through Connecting Europe Facility Digital in 51 Digital Global Gateway projects, with a new wave of projects to follow soon.
Find more information on the report and new funding opportunities.
Source: European Commission | Shaping Europe’s digital future | News & Views (https://tinyurl.com/esd6j2y7)