NATO moved Friday to enhance its naval presence in the Baltic Sea as Estonia’s navy began patrolling an undersea cable supplying energy from Finland.
The move follows the excision of a different cable from the power grid on Christmas Day in what Finnish authorities allege is a case of deliberate, targeted sabotage by Russia, as Breitbart News reported.
‘Terrorism Cannot be Ruled Out’ Another Underwater Power Cable Cut in Northern Europe, Russian ‘Dark Fleet’ Ship Suspecthttps://t.co/GR7rzKrObX
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) December 26, 2024
A ship named as Eagle S is suspected of damaging the Estlink 2 cable and Finnish coast guard crew have boarded the oil tanker and steered it into Finnish waters.
The E.U. said the Eagle S was part of “Russia’s shadow fleet” and the failure of the undersea cable was the “latest in a series of suspected attacks on critical infrastructure.”
Estonia’s patrols were confirmed by Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur via a post on social media.
“We’ve decided to send our navy close to Estlink 1 to defend and secure our energy connection with Finland,” he posted on X.
We’ve decided to send our navy close to Estlink 1 to defend and secure our energy connection with Finland. pic.twitter.com/pL6FnkL8u0
— Hanno Pevkur (@HPevkur) December 27, 2024
The Estlink 2 submarine cable cut on Wednesday came just over a month after two telecommunications cables were severed in Swedish territorial waters in the Baltic Sea.
AFP reports Finnish authorities confirmed they were investigating the suspect oil tanker while NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said NATO will “enhance its military presence in the Baltic Sea” as a way of countering any future intentions from bad actors seeking to copy the cable cutting.
