On Monday, Swedish authorities detained a vessel in the Baltic Sea for what they described as “gross sabotage” after a communication cable was damaged in a day. The ship reported being escorted to the coast of Sweden for investigation.
“Yesterday, Sweden committed a serious act of sabotage in the economic zone,” Mats Ljungqvist, the Swedish prosecutor leading the investigation, said in a telephone interview on Monday.
Authorities have not yet disclosed the nature or extent of the damage to the communications cable running between Sweden and Latvia.
The incident follows other suspected sabotage attempts on cables near the Baltic Sea, the theater of a potential hybrid war between NATO and Russia.
Two weeks ago, the Atlantic Alliance launched a new patrol and surveillance operation to protect critical infrastructure in the sea along Russia's coastline a set of cables there was incised.
The NATO mission, called Baltic Sentry, aims to help protect submarine cables and pipelines by increasing the alliance's presence in the region, the organization's secretary general Mark Rutte said. Operations include frigates, maritime patrol aircraft, underwater satellites, remotely operated vehicles and drones.
NATO is one of them Newest membersaid the mission was an effort “to protect critical low-level infrastructure and enhance the ability to respond as needed.”
Union officials have consistently said that when Russia is suspected of being behind cable and pipeline sabotage, it is extremely difficult to prove true responsibility.
The Swedish Security Service said on Sunday that the initial investigation showed that the incident was an effort to target Swedish interests. The seized ship is “suspected of carrying out sabotage”, the security service He made a comment on Monday.
“Currently, the Swedish authorities to carry out various investigative measures of the ship,” Johan Wikstrom, representative of the phone on Monday.
Mr. Ljungqvist, the prosecutor, said the seized vessel was called the Vehen.
Navigation Sea is a shipping company in Buldara, Bulgaria Lists vezhens It was placed in the fleet as a bulk carrier with a Maltese flag A comment on the website On Monday, a force majeure situation occurs due to unfavorable hydrometeorological conditions in the area.
The company said it had “no knowledge of any intentional actions by the crew” that could have caused the cable damage and expressed its support for authorities in the investigation.
Mr. Wikstrom said the Coast Guard escorted the ship to the Swedish coast on Sunday. It is now anchored outside the southern city of Karlskrona, Sweden's largest military base and also home to Coast Guard headquarters.
Mr. Wikstrom declined to provide other details about the seized vessel or how or if authorities damaged the cable.
NATO ships and aircraft have responded to the reported damage and are working with regional allies, the alliance said in an email on Monday.
Prime Minister Evika told Silina of Latvia Social media post It said Swedish and NATO authorities were working together to investigate the incident, patrol the area and inspect the ships. He added that the cable was damaged in Sweden's economic zone and that the authorities had launched a “criminal investigation”.
In late December, Finnish authorities seized an oil tanker they suspected of cutting undersea cables, accusing them of being part of the ship. Russia's “shadow navy” which Western officials say what they think Russia uses it Evasion of sanctions. In response, NATO said it would increase safety The European Union threatened new sanctions against Moscow in the region.
In November, several European countries suspended each other Chinese merchant ship After cutting the two fiber-optic cables. The Minister of Defense of Germany explained the cutting of the cables an act of “sabotage”. It is aimed at European countries that support Ukraine Fighting with RussiaAmerican intelligence agencies said they deliberately did not know.
In 2022, explosions damaged parts Nord flow pipelineIt stops the delivery of Russian natural gas to Western Europe. American intelligence pointed to a Ukrainian groupalthough there are many It remains murky about the event.
The damaged cable on Sunday was reported to belong to the State Radio and Television Center of Latvia A comment from the center Sunday night.
The statement noted that the cable is located at a depth of 160 feet, the Center will be able to determine the exact nature of the damage only after the repair work begins.
Steven Erlanger He gave a speech in Berlin.