Taipei: A submarine cable connecting Taiwan and the Matsu Islands experienced a “complete disconnection” on Sunday, marking the second incident of its kind for the fiber optic telecom link this year, as confirmed by the Ministry of Digital Affairs (MODA) on Monday.

According to Focus Taiwan, Chunghwa Telecom, the operator of the undersea cable, notified the National Communications Commission about the full outage of the Taiwan-Matsu No. 2 cable, located in waters off New Taipei, around midday on Sunday. Following standard protocol, the telecom company sought assistance from the Coast Guard Administration to investigate the cause of the cable break, as stated by MODA.

MODA also instructed Chunghwa Telecom to initiate backup systems, including microwave links, to “maintain connectivity” between Taiwan proper and the Matsu region (officially Lienchiang County), a Taiwan-administered archipelago near China. Previously, the Taiwan-Matsu No. 2 cable had been repaired after disconnecting on January 22, with MODA attributing the break to “natural deterioration.”

A complete disconnection also occurred with the Taiwan-Matsu No. 3 cable on January 15, which is currently undergoing repairs. MODA indicated that Chunghwa Telecom aims to complete the repairs of Taiwan-Matsu No. 3 by the end of February and Taiwan-Matsu No. 2 by the end of March.

In an interview with CNA, Audrey Tang, Taiwan’s ambassador-at-large for cyber affairs, stated that the nation maintained uninterrupted internet connectivity during the previous Taiwan-Matsu cable breakdown incident. Tang, who was in Germany last week for the Munich Cyber Security Conference, commended Taiwan’s approach to digital challenges before an international audience.

Chunghwa Telecom issued a news release on Monday, affirming that its microwave technologies alone could sustain connectivity between Taiwan and the Matsu Islands, providing 12.6 gigabits per second of microwave-based connectivity, while Matsu’s peak usage is around 9.5 gigabits per second.

Additionally, the partially state-owned company mentioned that another Taiwan-Matsu submarine telecom cable is under construction, with completion anticipated in 2026. Chunghwa Telecom, 35.29 percent owned by the Ministry of Transportation and Communications, operates all 10 domestic undersea cables in Taiwan, including the two connecting Taiwan and the Matsu Islands.