Swedish prosecutors are investigating sabotage of a fiber optic cable in the Baltic Sea that belongs to Latvia. The vessel "Vežen" is suspected and has been detained.
This is reported by Delfi and Expressen.
The Swedish Security Service, the Swedish Police, the Coast Guard and the Swedish Armed Forces are involved in the investigation, as the cable damage was found in the countryʼs economic zone.
It is previously known that the vessel, registered in Malta, left the Russian port of Ust-Luga on January 24, and on January 26 was moving between Gotland and Latvia.
The prime ministers of Sweden and Latvia have spoken about the incident, and NATO has launched a large-scale operation in the Baltic Sea using ships and aircraft. Meanwhile, Latvian President Edgars Rinkėvičius stressed that he expects a speedy outcome of the investigation into the cable damage and close coordination with allies.
Latvian police have also opened criminal proceedings regarding the incident under two articles of the Criminal Code — intentional damage to property with serious consequences and intentional damage to a public electronic communications network.
The damaged cable belongs to Latvian Radio (LVRTC). It is located at a depth of more than 50 meters. The nature of the damage will be determined only after the start of repair work.
Cable breaks in the Baltic Sea
An undersea telecommunications cable between Finland and Germany, which runs alongside other important undersea infrastructure, including gas pipelines and power cables, was severed on November 18, 2024. A cable between Lithuania and Sweden was also reported to have been severed. Both incidents came just weeks after the United States detected increased Russian military activity around major undersea cables.
Germany immediately declared that these incidents were sabotage and a hybrid attack. The American newspaper The Wall Street Journal, citing sources, wrote that the crew of the Chinese bulk carrier Yi Peng 3 is suspected of severing communication cables in the Baltic Sea.
Investigators believe the crew may have intentionally severed two important data cables while dragging the anchor along the bottom of the Baltic Sea for more than 160 kilometers.
The Yi Peng 3 crew consists of two people: the captain, a Chinese citizen, and a Russian sailor. The investigation by European countries is now focused on whether the captain was recruited by Russian intelligence.
Swedish Minister of Civil Defense Karl-Oskar Bolin said that authorities have determined that a Chinese ship also threatened to cut the power cable connecting the Baltic and Nordic countries.
On Christmas Day, December 25, the Estlink 2 submarine power cable between Finland and Estonia broke. Two ships were passing over it at the time of the incident. Finnish police suspect that the Eagle S, which was en route from Russia to Egypt, was involved.
For more news and in-depth stories from Ukraine please follow us on X.