HELSINKI, Finland (AP) – Finnish investigators investigating damage to power and multiple data cables in the Baltic Sea say they have found evidence of an anchor dragging on the ocean floor. This apparently belongs to a Russian-related vessel that has already been captured.
The Estlink 2 power transmission cable, which transmits energy from Finland across the Baltic Sea to Estonia, broke on December 25th. There was little impact on service, but two data cables and a Nord Stream gas pipeline were previously damaged, both of which were called sabotage.
Finnish police chief investigator Sami Paila said late Sunday that the trail continued for “dozens of kilometers (miles), if not nearly 100 kilometers.”
“Our current understanding is that the drag marks in question are those of the Eagle S vessel's anchor. We were able to uncover this issue through underwater investigations,” Pyra said. He spoke to Finnish national television broadcaster Ale.
“We can say that we have a preliminary understanding of what happened at sea and how the anchor marks were formed at sea,” Pyra said, without providing further details. There wasn't. “The question of intent is an extremely important issue that must be clarified in the preliminary investigation, and will be clarified as the investigation progresses.''
Officials said the ship was escorted to an internal berth near the port of Porvoo on Saturday to facilitate the investigation. He is being investigated on criminal charges of aggravated interference with telecommunications, aggravated vandalism and aggravated regulatory violation.
European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Karas said on Monday that “sabotage in Europe has increased” since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Karas told the German newspaper Welt that the recent “sabotage attempts in the Baltic Sea are not isolated incidents” but “are part of a planned and systematic action to damage our country's digital and energy infrastructure.” “It's part of a pattern.”
He vowed that the EU would “take stronger measures” to counter the risks posed by ships of Russia's shadow fleet.
The Eagle S is registered in the Cook Islands, but Finnish customs officials and the EU Executive Committee described it as part of Russia's shadow fuel tanker fleet. These are old vessels with unclear ownership, acquired during the Ukraine war to circumvent Western sanctions against Russia, and are operating without Western-regulated insurance.
Russia's use of the vessel raises environmental concerns about accidents, given the age of the vessel and the uncertainty of insurance coverage.
“Russia's shadow fleet threatens the environment and fills Russia's military arsenal. Currently, these ships are also suspected of sabotage,” Karas said.
In response to the cable break, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said last week that the military alliance, which Finland also joined last year, would step up patrols in the Baltic region.
Finland, which shares a 1,340-kilometre (832-mile) border with Russia, joined NATO in 2023, abandoning a decades-long policy of neutrality amid Russia's war with Ukraine.
