--- description: U.S. officials are worried about the proximity of Russian submarines and spy ships to essential underwater global communications cables title: U.S. Worried by Russian Loitering Near Underwater Cables image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc1179231a411581e/698869c3f887dc7e9be93038/453955098.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [russia](/tag/russia/) ## russia Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Russia's Loitering Close to Vital Underwater Data Cables Has Washington Spooked by [Joanna Plucinska](/author/joanna-plucinska/) ## Joanna Plucinska Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 26, 2015 5:46 AM CUT  Russian crew members get on board of the newly built Novorossiysk B-261 multipurpose diesel-electric submarine in St. Petersburg on Aug. 22, 2014 Russian crew members get on board of the newly built Novorossiysk B-261 multipurpose diesel-electric submarine in St. Petersburg on Aug. 22, 2014Olga Maltseva —AFP/Getty Images by [Joanna Plucinska](/author/joanna-plucinska/) ## Joanna Plucinska Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 26, 2015 5:46 AM CUT U.S. officials are growing increasingly concerned about the close proximity of certain Russian submarines and spy ships to essential underwater global communications and Internet cables, the [New York _Times_ ](http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/26/world/europe/russian-presence-near-undersea-cables-concerns-us.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=first-column-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&%5Fr=0 "undefined")reports. Experts fear that were the Russians to successfully sever the undersea fiber-optic cables, they could cut communications for much of the West, crippling a system that U.S. allies have grown overwhelmingly dependent on. “I’m worried every day about what the Russians may be doing,” Rear Admiral Frederick Roegge, the commander of the U.S. Navy’s submarine fleet in the Pacific, told the _Times_. The worries show the intense distrust that Washington has developed for the Russian military, the _Times_ says, marking a resurgent Cold War mentality between the two powers, especially following territorial gains for Moscow in Ukraine and its entanglement in the Syrian civil war. Read the _Times_’ full report [here](http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/26/world/europe/russian-presence-near-undersea-cables-concerns-us.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=first-column-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&%5Fr=0 "undefined"). \[[_NYT_](http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/26/world/europe/russian-presence-near-undersea-cables-concerns-us.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=first-column-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&%5Fr=0 "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4086633/u-s-russia-data-cables/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4086633/u-s-russia-data-cables/"},"headline":"Russia's Loitering Close to Vital Underwater Data Cables Has Washington Spooked","datePublished":"2015-10-26T05:46:52.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T12:04:04.836Z","description":"Resurgent tensions between the two powers hark back to Cold War times","url":"https://time.com/4086633/u-s-russia-data-cables/","keywords":["russia","Navy","U.S.","Cold War"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc1179231a411581e/698869c3f887dc7e9be93038/453955098.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Joanna Plucinska","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/joanna-plucinska/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc1179231a411581e/698869c3f887dc7e9be93038/453955098.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"RUSSIA-NAVY","caption":"RUSSIA-NAVY","creditText":"Olga Maltseva —AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/russia/","name":"russia"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4086633/u-s-russia-data-cables/","name":"Russia's Loitering Close to Vital Underwater Data Cables Has Washington Spooked"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Russian Parliament OKs Use Of Military Force In Syria","description":"The Russian parliament has approved the use of military force in Syria to help prop up the Syrian regime and fight extremists.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/r7UvKC8i/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2015-09-30T14:01:55.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/r7UvKC8i.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4086633/u-s-russia-data-cables/","duration":"PT48S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4086633/u-s-russia-data-cables/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```