By Anthony Marcus for Eurasia Business News, April 10, 2025. Article no.1482.
China has unveiled a groundbreaking deep-sea cable cutter capable of severing reinforced undersea cables at unprecedented depths of up to 4,000 meters (13,123 feet). Developed by the China Ship Scientific Research Centre (CSSRC) and the State Key Laboratory of Deep-Sea Manned Vehicles, this device represents a significant technological leap, doubling the operational range of existing cable-cutting tools. While officially intended for civilian applications like salvage and seabed mining, its dual-use potential has raised alarms globally.
Key Features of the Cable Cutter
Cutting Mechanism: A 150-mm diamond-coated grinding wheel spinning at 1,600 rpm can slice through steel-reinforced cables up to 60 mm thick while minimizing sediment disruption.
Pressure Resistance: A titanium alloy casing and oil-compensated seals enable operation under extreme underwater pressures.
Integration with Submersibles: The device is compatible with China’s advanced crewed and uncrewed submersibles, such as the Fendouzhe (Striver) and Haidou series.
Global Implications
Threat to Communications: Submarine cables facilitate 95% of global data transmission. Severing these cables could disrupt internet connectivity, financial markets, defense systems, and everyday communications.
While satellites are being developed as backup options, they currently account for less than 1% of international data transmission due to their higher cost and lower capacity.
Cyber Warfare Potential: The device’s stealth capabilities make it ideal for sabotage without direct military confrontation, raising concerns about its use in geopolitical conflicts.
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Strategic Risks: Incidents of cable damage linked to Chinese vessels in regions like the Baltic Sea and Taiwan Strait have heightened fears of intentional sabotage.
International Reactions
Defense analysts warn that this Chinese technology could be weaponized to target critical infrastructure during heightened tensions or conflicts.
Nations like the U.S., Japan, and Taiwan are exploring strategies to secure underwater cables through monitoring, contingency planning, and multilateral cooperation.
China’s disclosure of this powerful tool marks a pivotal moment in deep-sea technology, potentially reshaping global security dynamics and maritime power balance.
Beijing seems to be leading in cutting edge technologies.
Last January, China’s Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST), often referred to as the “artificial sun,” has achieved a groundbreaking milestone in nuclear fusion research by maintaining a plasma loop for 1,066 seconds (approximately 17 minutes and 46 seconds) at temperatures exceeding 180 million degrees Fahrenheit. This achievement, reported on January 20, surpasses the previous record of 403 seconds, also set by EAST in 2023.
In addition, Chinese start-up DeepSeek challenges global AI giant OpenAI with its model, DeepSeek-V3, developed for $5.5 million, outperformed models like OpenAI’s GPT-4 and Meta’s Llama 3.1 using optimized techniques on restricted NVIDIA H800 GPUs.
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© Copyright 2025 – Eurasia Business News. Article no. 1482.
