[lxgr]

> Can’t they tell the Russian non-combat ships (or pressure them) to get lost?

Not in international waters, which is where submarine cables are largely located.

And even if they could: The oceans are... kind of big. If it were that easy to "just patrol" shipping lanes/submarine cable tracks etc., why would piracy still be a concern?

[willy_k]

Would relatively cheap AI-piloted satellite connected ships with sensor equipment work as a solution?

[lxgr]

I doubt it. It seems to be a similar problem to missile defense: When you have a lot of ground to cover and can only be in one place at a time, the defender will always be at a huge cost disadvantage compared to the attacker. That's only in one/two dimensions – add a third (submarines) and the cost imbalance shifts even more.

And even if it works, this will only give attackers pause that are deterred by attribution.

[XorNot]

Basically if mass produced something makes defense "cheap" it likely makes offense even cheaper.