Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said that the increasing number of attacks on undersea cables in the Baltic Sea could hardly be considered a coincidence or an accident and that the EU was considering sanctions against the Russian shadow fleet, on Thursday, the 26th of December, reports Estonian ERR.
At 12:26 on Christmas Day, the 25th of December, damage to the EstLink 2 cable between Finland and Estonia was reported and a total of four cables were reportedly severed – three connecting Finland and Estonia, and one between Finland and Germany.
In a joint report with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday, Kallas condemned the “deliberate destruction of Europe’s critical infrastructure”.
“The suspect vessel is part of a Russian shadow fleet that threatens security and the environment, while funding Russia’s war budget. We will propose further measures, including sanctions, to target this fleet,” the two wrote. “We stand in full solidarity with Finland, Estonia and Germany.”
Estonia’s former prime minister Kallas also told ERR that the recent string of incidents could hardly be considered a coincidence.
“Sabotage is on the rise in Europe and we have seen various attacks: arson, cyber attacks and election interference. The timing and precision of the current damage to EstLink 2 and the data cables shows a fairly coordinated effort,” she said.
Kallas linked the recent damage to undersea infrastructure to Russia’s war in Ukraine, calling them “a deliberate attempt to seize our digital and energy infrastructure”. She stressed that such actions will not deter anyone from continuing to support Ukraine.
Prime Minister Kristen Michal thanked both leaders for their support and welcomed their efforts to combat further incidents.
“Consistent attacks on undersea infrastructure require a joint and decisive response among EU Member States,” he wrote on social media.
On Thursday, Finland detained a Russian “shadow fleet” vessel suspected of sabotage and boarded it.
Robin Lardot, director of the Finnish National Bureau of Investigation, SAID that they are investigating “grave sabotage” and that the ship’s anchor is believed to have caused the damage.
The 170km-long Estlink 2 repair will take several months, and the power outage increases the risk of tight power supplies during the winter, operator Fingrid said in a statement.
This is the latest in a series of incidents in the Baltic Sea that have damaged cables or pipelines. In November, cables between Finland and Germany, as well as Sweden and Lithuania, were severed.
Russia is using its “shadow fleet” to circumvent sanctions imposed after it launched its invasion of Ukraine. The ships are often old and without proper insurance. Earlier this month, 12 countries, including Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, agreed to “disrupt and deter” shadow fleet vessels.
Also read: Estonian intelligence chief warns that NATO must deter Russia for next 20 years
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Publish date : 2024-12-27 02:44:00
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