Germany has said that two communication cables in the Baltic Sea were likely damaged on purpose, a case of sabotage. The damage occurred over the weekend and is part of a growing number of suspicious incidents in the region. These events come amid rising concerns about Russian activities in Europe, which are seen as part of a larger strategy of “hybrid warfare.” Tensions between East and West have been fueled further by the ongoing war in Ukraine. At the same time, reports suggest that a Chinese ship was nearby when the cables were damaged, raising questions about whether it played a role—intentionally or not.
The two damaged cables are both important fiber-optic lines. One connects the Swedish island of Gotland to Lithuania, and the other links Finland to Germany. The first cable, about 135 miles long, was disrupted around 8:00 a.m. GMT on Sunday, causing an internet outage. The second, stretching 746 miles from Finland to Germany, was cut off early Monday morning.
The incidents quickly sparked speculation that they were caused by hostile actions, with Germany’s Defense Minister, Boris Pistorius, stating that it was unlikely the damage was accidental. He even suggested that ships’ anchors might not have been the cause and called the damage “sabotage.” However, he has not provided direct evidence to support this theory.
The foreign ministers of Finland and Germany have expressed their concerns, confirming that a full investigation is underway. Sweden’s Navy has also joined the efforts, searching for the locations of the damaged cables. This is not the first suspicious activity in the Baltic Sea. In 2022, explosions along the Nord Stream gas pipelines shocked Europe, though the cause of those explosions is still under investigation.
Other sabotage incidents have been reported, such as damage to cables in northern Norway earlier this year. These events raise the possibility that there may be a concerted effort to disrupt critical infrastructure in the region.
The Baltic Sea has long been of strategic importance to both Russia and NATO. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, tensions have intensified, and there has been a rise in sabotage incidents. Both Finnish and German foreign ministers pointed out
that these acts could be part of a broader hybrid warfare strategy, threatening European security.
The German Foreign Minister, Annalena Baerbock, linked these incidents to broader Russian activity, such as cyber-attacks and sabotage attempts. She warned that Europe’s critical infrastructure, including undersea cables, is increasingly at risk. NATO has also increased patrols in the Baltic to protect these vulnerable networks. Vice Admiral Didier Maleterre from NATO highlighted that Russia has developed advanced techniques to disrupt the European economy, including targeting undersea cables.
Russian naval capabilities are seen as a major threat, with reports suggesting that Russia’s special submarines, submersibles, and unmanned underwater vehicles could be used to disrupt or even cut cables. There are also surface ships, like the Yantar, which are equipped to conduct these kinds of covert operations.
However, it’s not clear whether the recent damage to the Baltic cables was caused by such high-tech methods. Some have speculated that a commercial vessel could have accidentally damaged the cables by dragging its anchor along the seabed. This was the case in a 2023 incident off Finland and Estonia, where a Chinese cargo ship was thought to have caused damage by dragging its anchor. A similar ship, the Yi Peng 3, was in the area when the latest cables were damaged, sparking further debate about whether this was an accident or something more deliberate.
These incidents highlight the vulnerability of undersea infrastructure, something that has been known for years. The growing strategic importance of the Baltic Sea, especially with the ongoing conflict between NATO and Russia, makes protecting these vital communication lines more crucial than ever.
