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EU plans Pan-Arctic Cable, first undersea Internet link to Greenland

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EU plans Pan-Arctic Cable, first undersea Internet link to Greenland

The European Union plans to create the first subsea Internet cable directly connecting Europe to Greenland. The project, called the Pan-Arctic Cable, could also extend to Canada and eventually link with Japan and South Korea, bypassing the United States.

The cable is described as an EU flagship project in a European Commission joint communication published on October 20, 2026. That policy document sets out a new European strategy for the Arctic. It supports "a sovereign, secure and resilient submarine cable connection linking Greenland directly to the EU", and it suggests that "like-minded partners like Canada" could be a stepping stone for future cable expansion toward Asia.

Elisabeth Braw, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council who leads the Threats to the Global Maritime Order Initiative, told Ars Technica that it is interesting the project is being considered at all, because five years ago it would have seemed like not a particularly commercially attractive proposition. She added that the fact it is being considered is very much on trend and a sign of our times.

The political backdrop, as Ars Technica tells it, is that the project gained official support after repeated Trump administration attempts to claim Greenland were settled through a trilateral security agreement between the United States, Greenland and Denmark in September 2026. The agreement preserves Greenland's autonomous territory status within the Kingdom of Denmark while expanding US military access. Even so, relations between the United States and its allies in Europe and Canada have grown increasingly strained since President Trump started trade wars with multiple countries and took an increasingly pro-Russia stance on the war in Ukraine.

Separately, Europe has been eyeing new Internet cable routes to Asia. According to TeleGeography, more than 90 percent of communications between Europe and Asia run through undersea cables in the Red Sea. Maintaining those cables has become riskier since open warfare resumed this year between the Yemeni government and the Houthi faction. Houthi forces have fired missiles and drones at commercial ships in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait chokepoint and the broader Red Sea.

Key facts

  • The EU plans the Pan-Arctic Cable, the first subsea Internet cable directly linking Europe and Greenland, as a flagship project in a European Commission joint communication dated October 20, 2026.
  • The cable could also extend to Canada and eventually link with Japan and South Korea, bypassing the United States.
  • The communication backs "a sovereign, secure and resilient submarine cable connection linking Greenland directly to the EU".
  • Backdrop: a September 2026 US-Greenland-Denmark security agreement settled the Greenland dispute, while US ties with Europe and Canada remain strained.
  • Separately, more than 90 percent of Europe-Asia communications run through Red Sea cables, per TeleGeography, and upkeep there has become riskier amid renewed fighting.

Why it matters

The plan is a first: no subsea Internet cable currently connects Europe directly to Greenland, according to the article's framing of this as the first such link. The Commission's wording stresses a "sovereign, secure and resilient" connection, and the possible extension through Canada to Japan and South Korea would route traffic around the United States. Elisabeth Braw says the idea would have looked commercially unattractive five years ago, and that its being considered now is a sign of the times.

Who it affects

The direct parties named are the EU and Greenland, an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark. Canada appears as a possible stepping stone toward Asia, and Japan and South Korea as eventual endpoints. The United States is the party the route would bypass. Operators and users of the existing Europe-Asia Red Sea cables are relevant because of the concentration risk the article describes.

How to use it

There is nothing to use yet. This is a policy plan in a Commission document, not a service. No construction timeline, route details, landing points or cable operator are given.

How solid is it

The core facts rest on a European Commission joint communication published on October 20, 2026, which labels the cable an EU flagship project. The Canada, Japan and South Korea links are only a possible extension, described with "could" and "eventually", not a committed plan. The Red Sea figure is attributed to TeleGeography. Braw's comment is an outside expert's reading of the project's significance.

Risks and caveats

No cost, budget or funding source for the Pan-Arctic Cable is given, and no capacity or technical specification. No reactions from the US, Denmark, Greenland, Canada, Japan or South Korea are reported. The article lists the Red Sea risk as a separate reason Europe is looking at new Asia routes; it does not say the Greenland cable is a response to it.

“It is interesting that this project is even being considered, because five years ago it would have seemed like not a particularly commercially attractive proposition”

— Elisabeth Braw, senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, to Ars Technica