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An underwater data cable between Sweden and Latvia was damaged early on Sunday, in at least the fourth episode of potential sabotage in the Baltic Sea in recent months, which has aroused NATO regarding the vulnerability of critical infrastructure .
Prime Minister Latvian Evika Siliņa said damage to the cable between the Latvian coastal city of Ventspils and Fårösund on the Swedish island of Gotland were significant And thus was probably caused by an external force.
A criminal investigation began. Previous incidents have been linked to Russian and Chinese ships.
Latvian authorities sent a patrol boat to inspect a ship close to the fiber optic cable belonging to the Center for Radio and State TV in the Baltic country when it was damaged, and also monitored two other nearby ships .
The Latvian navy said that the ship was Michalis San, a bulk carrier struck by the Maltese en route to Russia from Algeria, although he found no sign of suspicious activity on board, reported television Latvian.
Ulf KrisSSON, the Swedish Prime Minister, said that “at least one” data cable had been damaged and that he had been in contact with Siliņa and that he was cooperating closely with NATO.
The president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen expressed her “full solidarity” with the Baltic countries, adding that “the resilience and security of our critical infrastructure is an absolute priority” for the EU.
Last week, NATO announced that it would deploy drones, submarines, ships and aircraft in the Baltic Sea to help detect and prevent hoof attempts against critical infrastructure in a mission known as Name of Sentry Baltic after three series of previous cables have been damaged in recent months.
The Finnish authorities last month took control of a ship belonging to the Fleet of Russian Oil Oil – Aging, poorly maintained ships recorded in remote jurisdictions such as the Cook Islands and are used to bypassing International sanctions – because they started a criminal investigation into aggravated sabotage compared to international sanctions – because they started a criminal investigation into aggravated sabotage compared to international sanctions – because they began a criminal investigation into sabotage aggravated by Report to international sanctions – because they started a criminal investigation into aggravated sabotage compared to international sanctions – because they began a criminal investigation into aggravated sabotage compared to the incident.
NATO allies welcomed Finland’s actions to seize the ship as an exemplary, following two previous potential sabotage incidents where suspicious ships left the Baltic Sea.
The first occurred at the end of 2023 when a Chinese container, the Newnew Polar Bear, cut a gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia with its anchor but was not arrested.
The second involved a Chinese bulk carrier, the Yi Peng 3, which, in November, exceeded two data cables in the Baltic Sea when they were cut.
He stopped for a month in international waters between Denmark and Sweden, and Chinese investigators embarked him. But the Swedish government criticized Beijing for not allowing the main Swedish investigator to get on board or inspect the ship.
The latest incident comes as the three Baltic States are preparing to disconnect their electricity systems from the old Soviet network in early February and to integrate into the European continental network, some fearing new potential disturbances before that.
Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have joined the EU and NATO since their independence after their forced annexation by the Soviet Union, and see their passage to the European electrical system as their final integration in the West.
Kęstatis Budrys, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, said The rules of navigation in the Baltic Sea had to be examined “especially with regard to the use of anchors” and added that there were now so many incidents that there was little chance that they could all be accidents.
The repair of data cables has tended to take much less time than that of gas or electricity connections, and the Lattton State Radio and Television Center said that it had found alternative routes for its communications.
Cartography by Aditi Bhandari
