OPINION:
The United States is facing an unprecedented threat — not of hostile troops or ships on the horizon but on the digital battlefield. The use of cyber-enabled sabotage is no longer an abstract possibility relegated to science fiction or Hollywood. It is real, it is now, and it is being used to target our critical infrastructure, including water systems and power grids.
Our adversaries, including communist China, are already engaging in cyber-enabled sabotage against the United States. This interference uses tools including malware, artificial intelligence and drone technology to infiltrate America’s defense and industrial systems and compromise our national security.
With each advancement, it is clear that our adversaries aim to erode America’s technological dominance and gain tactical advantages that weaken our country’s defense.
China’s cyberattacks in particular mark a significant shift from long-standing international norms. Instead of targeting military and defense assets, historically understood to be fair game for state-sponsored espionage, our adversaries are now exploiting vulnerabilities in our commercial supply chains and information technology networks to intentionally target civilian populations. Thankfully, the Trump administration has shown it understands these stakes and is willing to meet the challenge head-on.
During President Trump’s first year in office, he has signed multiple executive orders and memorandums to aggressively strengthen the nation’s security posture against acts of irregular warfare. These actions include prioritizing the use of artificial intelligence to identify and manage cyber vulnerabilities, increasing the use and development of post-quantum cryptology tools to defend against advanced digital threats, and renewing a maximum pressure strategy to prevent Iran from pursuing malicious cyber operations and nuclear weapons.
The federal government and private sector have warned of increased cyber threats for years and partnered to implement tracking and reporting on attacks aimed at our infrastructure. The Idaho National Laboratory, located in my home state, is recognized globally for its work in defending industrial technology from cyberattacks.
The Idaho National Laboratory’s key expertise and capabilities aid the nation with advanced technical support to counter foreign threats. Through its recently launched Special Activities Office, experts are developing tools, tactics and strategies to better defend the nation against cyber-enabled sabotage by hostile foreign nations. Innovations like these are crucial to addressing this persistent threat but cannot be the sole solution.
As our adversaries ramped up their cyber operations, including by penetrating the devices of U.S. political candidates and senior officials last year, the U.S. response was bogged down by bureaucratic inaction and siloed policy discussions. We must end this fragmented approach and take decisive action. Under Mr. Trump, cyber defense is no longer a debate; it’s a directive.
The administration’s embrace of cyber capabilities emphasizes that future wars will be fought as much in the digital arena as on physical battlefields. Both the public and policymakers need to increase their awareness about the national security threats posed by cyberattacks.
We must learn the lessons, such as those demonstrated in the 2015 novel “Ghost Fleet,” to prepare ourselves against our increasingly sophisticated, technologically advanced adversaries. Although cyber-enabled sabotage of U.S. critical infrastructure has long been considered an act of terrorism, previous administrations were reluctant to unleash our full strategic capabilities to effectively respond and defend the nation against acts of irregular warfare.
Mr. Trump has seen this moment for what it is and begun to reorient our national posture to meet the challenges posed by our adversaries. Congress must continue to support him in this endeavor by passing more legislation that directs resources to forward-leaning cyber operations and expanded artificial intelligence capabilities for national defense, like in the budget reconciliation bill. Through these actions and more, we will protect the American people, our values and our nation’s sovereignty, leadership, freedom and global influence in an increasingly contested and connected world.
• U.S. Sen. Jim Risch, Idaho Republican, is chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and a senior member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.
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