The Challenging Terrain of Critical Infrastructures – A Geopolitical Perspective

Abstract With intensifying weaponized conflicts and authoritarian tendencies across countries, geopolitical risks related to critical infrastructure (CI) have increased. However, views on what exactly constitutes CI, what risks are associated with it, especially when control of it is ceded to foreign operators, and what strategies are best suited to manage these risks and make CI more resilient, vary widely among experts in the field and among governments and institutions concerned with CI protection and resilience. This paper compares the existing concepts and approaches adopted in the scientific work and across major developed economies to identify and manage risks related to CI, focusing on geopolitical aspects of CI protection and resilience. It eventually postulates that a comprehensive and coherent framework is needed to address the underlying (geopolitical) risks and thus achieve more resilient CI systems. Especially in the European Union, a more active and systematic dialog is required to enhance the common understanding of critical infrastructures, their sectoral and transboundary interdependences and the role of resilience therein. Failing to do so in a context of intensifying geopolitical tensions could turn the new mantra of “de-risking” strategies into an empty phase.