WSJ: The crew of a Chinese ship is suspected of breaking communication cables in the Baltic Sea

The crew of the Chinese bulk carrier Yi Peng 3 is suspected of breaking communication cables in the Baltic Sea — it has been surrounded by European warships in international waters for a week.

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) writes about this with reference to sources.

Investigators believe that the crew of a Chinese vessel loaded with Russian fertilizer may have deliberately severed two important data cables between Finland and Germany, Sweden and Lithuania while dragging its anchor on the bottom of the Baltic Sea for more than 100 miles.

The investigation by European countries focused on whether the captain of the Chinese vessel was recruited by Russian intelligence. Law enforcement officials say it is "extremely unlikely" that the captain did not see the dropped anchor, which slowed the vessel for hours and tore cables in its path.

The bulk carrier left the Russian Baltic port of Ust-Luga on November 15. It became known about the cliffs in general on November 18. The shipʼs owner, Ningbo Yipeng Shipping, is cooperating with the investigation and has allowed its ship to stop in international waters. They refused to comment on the situation there. Russia denies its involvement.

The investigation established that the first cable between Sweden and Lithuania was cut by the anchor. Then the shipʼs transponder, which records its movement on the automatic identification system, turned off. Bulker continued and later cut the second cable between Germany and Finland. Then Yi Peng 3 began to zigzag, raised anchor and moved on.

The Yi Peng 3 crew includes a Chinese captain and a Russian sailor. The latter has not yet been interrogated. Several Western law enforcement and intelligence officials do not believe the Chinese government was involved in the incident, but suspect Russian intelligence services were behind the sabotage.

The Chinese bulk carrier is now guarded by a flotilla of North Atlantic Treaty Organization ships belonging to Denmark, Germany and Sweden. International maritime law does not allow NATO ships to force the Yi Peng 3 into one of their ports. Swedish and German authorities are therefore negotiating with the shipʼs owner to gain access to the ship and question its crew.

The Yi Peng 3 operated only in Chinese waters from 2019 to early March 2024, but then changed its operating pattern and began carrying Russian coal and other cargoes, calling at Russian ports such as “Nakhodka” in the Sea of Japan, making several voyages to the port of Murmansk in Barents Sea and a trip to the Baltic Sea.

• On November 18, it became known about the break of the underwater telecommunication cable between Finland and Germany. It runs alongside other important underwater infrastructure, including gas pipelines and power cables. Later, Lithuania also announced that the communication cable between their country and Sweden had been cut. Both incidents came weeks after the US revealed increased Russian military activity around major undersea cables. Germany also believes that these incidents are sabotage and a hybrid attack.

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