In a stunning show of force, NATO has sent a fleet of ten ships to the Baltic to protect Europe’s crucial undersea cables after a spate of sabotage attacks.
The ships are set to remain at sea until April and will be strategically positioned near energy and data cables in an effort to deter any attempts to destroy them.
The decision to bolster the alliance’s engagement follows a number of disruptions in the Baltic Sea in recent months.
Finland is currently conducting a criminal investigation into the oil tanker Eagle S, a Russia-linked ship, after its anchor was suspected of causing damage to the Estlink-2 power cable on Christmas Day.
The vital cable takes electricity from Finland to Estonia across the Baltic Sea.
The incident cut the electricity connection on Estlink 2 between EU and NATO states Finland and Estonia on December 25 and sparked uproar in Europe, with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte vowing to ‘enhance the military presence in the Baltic Sea.’
The UK-led collection of mainly Baltic and Nordic countries that join forces in defence, the Joint Expeditionary Force, announced Monday it will increase the monitoring of ship traffic by using AI.
It comes as Lithuania said Wednesday that it would bring forward increased security of a key electricity cable linking it to neighbouring Poland, citing the potential for sabotage.
Finnish Coast Guard vessel Uisko patrols near to oil tanker Eagle S (not in picture) anchored near the Kilpilahti port in Porvoo, on the Gulf of Finland on January 9, 2025
Estonia has begun naval patrols to protect an undersea cable supplying electricity from Finland following suspected sabotage of another one on Christmas Day
Finnish authorities announced on January 8, 2025 that they had banned the oil tanker Eagle S, suspected of belonging to the Russian ‘ghost fleet’ and of having caused damage to five submarine cables, from sailing due to ‘serious faults’
The EU and NATO member, along with its Baltic neighbours Latvia and Estonia, is set to decouple from the Russian power grid next month, the culmination of decades-long efforts to reduce reliance on Moscow.
The government said the Public Security Service agency would begin protecting key facilities of the Lithuania-Poland energy connection, known as LitPol Link, starting January 15, instead of in April as previously planned.
‘All possible scenarios of sabotage or diversion are being assessed, from cybersecurity to certain physical actions,’ Prime Minister Gintautas Paluckas told reporters after a government meeting.
Lithuania also maintains an electricity grid connection with Sweden via the Baltic Sea, which will come under Public Security Service protection in April as scheduled.
Sweden said Tuesday that its navy had recovered the anchor of the alleged Russian ‘shadow fleet’ tanker, which is suspected of damaging telecom and power cables on the floor of the Baltic Sea.
The EstLink 2 electricity cable and four telecom cables that lie on the seafloor linking Finland and Estonia went offline after suspected sabotage.
The incident occurred just weeks after other cables in the Baltic sea were severed in similar incidents that experts and politicians say are part of a hybrid war between Russia and Western countries.
Suspicion over the December 25 incident has fallen on the Eagle S, an oil tanker flying the Cook Islands flag and that’s thought to be part of Russia’s so-called ‘shadow fleet’ – ships that carry Russian crude oil and petroleum products, which are embargoed over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
The Estlink 2 power cable in the Gulf of Finland was ruptured in suspected Russian interference
The Estlink 2 submarine cable was disconnected from the grid on December 25, just over a month after two telecommunications cables were severed in Swedish territorial waters in the Baltic Sea
Finnish authorities said on December 26 that they were investigating a Russian oil tanker, named Eagle S, that sailed from a Russian port over suspected ‘sabotage’
Finnish police said on December 29 that they had found a drag trail stretching dozens of miles along the seabed.
Investigators suspect that the cables were damaged after the tanker’s anchor was dragged over them.
Sweden last week sent a submarine rescue vessel to assist Finland in the investigation and on Tuesday said that the anchor had been recovered.
‘The HMS Belos has located and lifted the anchor and handed it over to Finnish authorities,’ Swedish navy spokesman Jimmie Adamsson told AFP.
Finland seized the tanker on December 28 and has banned eight crew members from leaving Finnish territory.
Finnish telecom operator Elisa said Monday that two of the four damaged telecom cables had been repaired.
The Estlink 2 power cable has not yet been repaired.
Energy and communications infrastructure in particular have been targeted as part of what experts and politicians call Russia’s ‘hybrid war’ with Western countries.
The Baltic is surrounded by a number of NATO member states.
Two telecommunications cables were cut on November 17 and 18 in Swedish territorial waters, prompting German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius to say he assumed it was sabotage.
A Chinese-flagged bulk carrier, the Yi Peng 3 is suspected of involvement.
The Eagle S vessel was en route to Port Said in Egypt
The Oil tanker Eagle S is seen anchored near the Kilpilahti port in Porvoo, on the Gulf of Finland on January 7, 2025
A Reuters analysis of MarineTraffic data showed that the ship’s coordinates corresponded to the time and place of the breaches.
‘From the Swedish side we have had contact with the ship and contact with China and said that we want the ship to move towards Swedish waters,’ Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson told a press conference at the time.
‘We’re not making any accusations but we seek clarity on what has happened,’ Kristersson said.
China’s foreign ministry said the communications channels with Sweden and other relevant parties were ‘unobstructed’, when asked about Sweden’s request.
‘I would like to reiterate China’s consistent support working with all countries to maintain the security of international submarine cables and other infrastructure in accordance with international law,’ ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told reporters.
Western intelligence officials from multiple countries have said they are confident the Chinese ship caused the cuts to both cables.
But they expressed different views on whether these were accidents or could have been deliberate.
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Publish date : 2025-01-09 03:07:00
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