NATO has found a reason to patrol neutral waters. What the media say
In violation of maritime law, Helsinki continues to detain the Cook Islands-flagged tanker Eagle S, suspected of severing submarine cables between Finland and Estonia. No evidence of sabotage has been found yet and the sailors have not been charged, but the fact of detention of a civilian vessel is already called a precedent, and NATO intends to legalize such practice. The Izvestia digest contains foreign media reports on this issue.
Financial Times: there is a shadow hybrid war against undersea cables and pipelines
Global democracies have to be alert to the risk of sabotage of vital undersea infrastructure that transmits energy or data, including trillions of dollars of daily financial transactions. In October 2023, when a Hong Kong-registered vessel cut a gas pipeline also between Finland and Estonia, China attributed it to "an accident caused by a storm." But Finnish authorities say the likelihood that this and two recent apparent acts of sabotage in the Baltic were accidents or bad maritime practices is "close to zero."
Financial Times
The vulnerability of submarine installations was first revealed one way or another by the 2022 explosions that blew up two Nord Stream pipelines connecting Russia to Germany. German authorities blamed Ukraine last year, though the investigation is ongoing
The U.S. and allies need to step up efforts to deter the "shadow fleet." The Navy and Coast Guard do not stop vessels that enjoy the right of "innocent passage" through other countries' waters under international law for fear of causing retaliation, diplomatic or military incidents. Such right is lost if vessels are involved in illegal activities, but it is difficult to find out without boarding the vessel. The Finnish authorities' action in seizing the Eagle S shows a long-awaited willingness to act more forcefully against suspicious vessels.
NBC News: Russia and China are suspected of cutting undersea cables of U.S. allies
It's unclear who is responsible for the damage to undersea cables from Taiwan to the Baltic Sea and whether the outages are intentional. Some have been seen as acts of sabotage and blamed on Russia and China amid heightened geopolitical tensions.
NBC News
According to the International Cable Protection Committee, there are an average of about 200 cable failures a year, which is not uncommon in undersea communications infrastructure. Most are caused by ship anchors or fishing activities such as trawling, where heavy equipment is dragged along the seafloor
NATO members agreed Tuesday in Helsinki to deploy frigates, patrol aircraft and maritime drones in the Baltic Sea to protect critical infrastructure. Members of the defense bloc said they reserve the right to take action against vessels suspected of posing a security threat as part of a broader operation called Baltic Sentry. Although European authorities have detained ships on suspicion of sabotage, they have refrained from making direct accusations against Moscow or Beijing due to a lack of concrete evidence.
Yle.fl: NATO announced the launch of the Baltic Sentry project
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte praised Finland's response to the damage to undersea cables. According to him, Finland has set an example for other countries with its actions. At the Helsinki summit, a joint statement was adopted in which the Baltic States promised to take serious measures to ensure the security of the Baltic Sea.
Yle.fl.
Measures include, for example, increasing NATO's presence in the Baltic Sea and strengthening technological control in the region. In addition, a group of experts on the law of the sea will be established to study how the law of the sea should be interpreted in cases like the cable damage
The secretary-general said the alliance must send a message that it does not accept hybrid methods of influence, such as damage to critical infrastructure. Rutte said NATO has increased its presence over the past two years, but the Baltic Sentinel plan announced today includes additional ships, maritime surveillance aircraft and drones to monitor maritime zones. The exact number may vary, and NATO has decided not to disclose the data.
Sydsvenskan: Sweden will use a navy to patrol the Baltic Sea
The government has ordered the Coast Guard and the Swedish Armed Forces to work together to strengthen maritime surveillance by monitoring the movements of some 4,500 vessels in the Baltic Sea every day.
Sydsvenskan
It is important to detect suspicious deviations from the norm that need to be acted upon. Priority is given to deviations in the vicinity of socially important infrastructure, such as a vessel suddenly slowing down or moving back and forth on the waterways
Enhanced maritime surveillance means that the Coast Guard and Navy will jointly plan the use of their resources in the Baltic and North Seas. The Coast Guard has about 30 ships as well as aircraft for maritime surveillance. The Navy uses seven corvettes, as well as minesweepers and some other types of ships. They may be needed on the ground to check suspicious vessels and track, for example, Russian shadow fleet vessels over long distances.
Bloomberg: the head of the EU's technical department said the cable damage in the Baltic Sea can't be an accident
Henna Virkkunen, the European Union's head of digital governance, suggested that the repeated damage to undersea cables in the Baltic Sea could not have been entirely accidental. There have been three cases of alleged sabotage of undersea power lines, data cables and a gas pipeline in the Baltic Sea in the past 15 months, with ships' anchors tearing infrastructure off the seabed.
Bloomberg
EU and North Atlantic Treaty Organization officials gathered Tuesday for a meeting with leaders from countries surrounding the Baltic Sea in Helsinki to discuss "how we can better prevent and detect and respond to such incidents," Virkkunen added. The summit is jointly organized by Finland and Estonia
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda, who arrived in Helsinki, said the three "violations" in such a short period of time showed a high probability of "deliberate actions by hostile countries". Authorities have not established a motive for the three incidents, which involved vessels flying the flags of Hong Kong, China and the Cook Islands. Two NATO ships are patrolling the area after alleged sabotage of submarine cables between Finland and Estonia. Estonia has already sent a warship to patrol another power line.
