NATO to boost forces in Baltic Sea after suspected cable sabotage
The alliance has condemned “attacks on critical infrastructure” in the region
NATO will increase its military activities in the Baltic Sea following a string of undersea cable disruptions, the alliance’s chief, Mark Rutte, has said.
The secretary general made his statement following a phone call with Finnish President Alexander Stubb on Friday. Helsinki has launched an investigation after the Estlink 2 power cable was damaged earlier this week.
“I expressed my full solidarity and support. NATO will enhance its military presence in the Baltic Sea,” Rutte wrote on X. He earlier said the US-led alliance “condemns any attacks on critical infrastructure.”
NATO members regularly conduct naval drills in the region and contribute to so-called air-policing missions, during which fighter jets fly close to Russia’s borders. Since 2014, the alliance has been steadily increasing the forces stationed on its eastern flank, citing the conflict in Ukraine.
The Estlink 2 cable, which connects Finland and Estonia, was damaged on Christmas Day. On Wednesday evening, the Finnish Border Guard service seized a Russian oil tanker, the Eagle S, on suspicion that its anchors had cut the cable.
According to Finnish media, the Egypt-bound Cook Islands-flagged ship made unexplained maneuvers when passing over the Estlink 2.
Kaja Kallas, the EU’s top diplomat and former prime minister of Estonia, claimed the detained vessel is part of a “shadow fleet” used by Moscow to bypass the sanctions on its oil trade.
Russia has not commented on the incident, but previously condemned the sanctions as unjustified and illegal.
Last month, two Baltic Sea cables – a communications link between Finland and Germany, and another one running between Lithuania and Sweden – were severed in rapid succession. Suspicion fell on a Chinese ship, the Yi Peng 3, which had passed over the cables around the time of the incident. China has denied Sweden’s accusation that it failed to cooperate with the probe.
