RUSSIAN spies have been sent to Ireland to inspect undersea cables connecting North America to the rest of the world.

The move has sparked fears of the possibility the cables could be tampered with, tapped or even cut completely.

7 Russian divers have been scouring the Irish coast for undersea telecoms cables

7 Map shows undersea telecoms cable spread across the Atlantic

7 Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting the the Kremlin today Credit: AP:Associated Press

Irish security services believe they were sent by Russia's elite foreign intelligence agency, the GRU, to check out the fiber-optic cables for weak points, The Sunday Times reported.

The country has also now ramped up security at landing sites along the Irish coast after the agents were reportedly also seen scouting out Dublin Port.

A sprawling network of transatlantic cables run under the world's oceans to power the internet, texts, calls, and global financial transactions.

About 97% of all intercontinental data is transferred through these cables, according to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum.

Experts have warned the country could be the "new battle space of the future" because it's a global internet hub and a base for many worldwide tech firms.

Ireland is a prime location for these undersea maps because of its proximity to both America and Europe.

'NEW BATTLE SPACE OF THE FUTURE'

Irish telecoms company Aqua Comms set up a $300 million cable in 2015 to connect the US to Dublin then onto London and Europe.

Irish police and military insiders now suspect the GRU is using Ireland as an operations base.

They fear they have set up on the island to gather intelligence on targets in the EU and the UK, The Sunday Times reported.

The revelations come just weeks after a critic of Vladimir Putin was found with his throat slit in what police are calling a "politically motivated" assassination in a French hotel.

Imran Aliev, 44, was found lying on the ground with "multiple wounds" to his chest and his throat slit with a bloodied knife next to the body.

His is the latest death to spark concerns of a Russian political hit squad running amok in Europe, hunting down any anti-establishment voices in hiding.

7 Members of the Garda Emergency Response Unit take part in emergency training exercise in Drogheda Port Credit: PA:Press Association

7 The exercise coincidentally coincides with news of Russian presence in Ireland Credit: PA:Press Association

7 Telecoms map shows where cables in and out our Ireland reach Credit: TeleGeography

Dublin is one of Europe's largest tech hubs with authorities suspecting the agents could also be spying on large tech firms.

Google, Airbnb, Facebook, and Twitter all have bases in the city.

Mark Galeotti, an expert on transnational crime and Russian security, said: "Ireland doesn't have a counter-intelligence capability.

"It's a relatively soft target. Ireland is a major node for the global internet.

"It has a large concentration of tech companies. This is the new battle space of the future."

The presence of Russian agents on their shores has also sparked fears of information warfare.

John Sipher, a retired CIA officer in Moscow, said there is a high chance the agents are either spying or planning to cut communications.

He said: "They also may wish to show their capability in order to threaten the West.

"Our FBI has caught Russians trying to gain access to underwater cables, including the areas where they come into land."

"They are also seeking to gain physical access to routers and communication nodes."

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Western countries have long feared that Russia could cut undersea cables, and interfere with the global economy and way of life.

Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart Peach, the UK's most senior military officer, said in December 2017: "There is a new risk to our way of life, which is the vulnerability of the cables that criss-cross the seabeds.

"Can you imagine a scenario where those cables are cut or disrupted, which would immediately and potentially catastrophically affect both our economy and other ways of living?"

7 Russian agents were also reportedly spotted monitoring Dublin Port Credit: Getty - Contributor