Baltic sea cable sabotage: Mystery deepens amid investigations
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced on Tuesday that the damage to two underwater fiber-optic communication cables in the Baltic Sea is considered an act of sabotage, even though the perpetrators remain unknown. Authorities in Germany, Finland, and Sweden are investigating the mysterious failures of this critical infrastructure.
Last week, two significant underwater communication cables in the Baltic Sea were damaged. On November 17, Telia reported a fault in the fiber-optic cable connecting Lithuania with Sweden. On the same day, the Finnish company Cinia reported a break in a similar cable between Helsinki and Rostock, Germany.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius expressed doubt that the cables were cut by accident. He also indicated skepticism toward explanations suggesting that anchors inadvertently damaged the cables. Pistorius shared these thoughts on Tuesday ahead of a meeting of EU defense ministers in Brussels, according to Reuters.
Pistorius highlighted the need to acknowledge that, despite not knowing the source, this situation represents a form of 'hybrid action'. He also noted that, without definitive evidence, it must be considered an act of sabotage.
According to Andrius Semeskevicius, Chief Technical Officer of the Swedish company Telia, it is still unclear whether the cable fault between Lithuania and Sweden resulted from damage or intentional breakage. In an interview with the Lithuanian public broadcaster LRT, he assured us that the problem did not cause serious disruptions in data transmission and that customers were using alternative connections.
The cable between Lithuania and Sweden connects at the sea bottom with the route running between Helsinki and Rostock. The Finnish fiber-optic service provider Cinia reported the break of this connection south of Öland island in the Swedish economic zone. The fault's cause remains unknown; accidental damage and intentional actions are suspected.
Investigation into Baltic Sea faults
Authorities in Finland and Germany have initiated an investigation into potential sabotage, noting that security is at risk not only due to Russia's aggressive conflict in Ukraine but also because of hybrid warfare carried out by hostile entities, as stated in a joint declaration reported by AFP.
In the meantime, Sweden's Minister of Civil Defense, Carl-Johan Bohlin, stated that the government is keeping a close watch on the situation's progress, with relevant agencies already beginning investigations. Bohlin stressed the importance of determining the reasons behind the issues affecting the two cables in the Baltic Sea.
