Sweden is investigating suspected sabotage of underwater telecommunications cables

Swedish police are investigating the suspect sabotage of underwater telecommunications cable in the Baltic Sea, connecting Germany and Finland.

A series of underwater cables and gas pipelines have been damaged in suspected attacks after the invasion of Russia in Ukraine in 2022, prompting NATO to launch a monitoring mission At sea last month.

The Swedish Coast Guard has sent a research ship to the east of Gotland, which is the largest island in the country and the reported location of the last violation.

Sweden Prime Minister Wolf Kristerson said the government was aware of the cable vacation and added that “should be seen in the context of the current serious security situation.”

The owner of the cable, Finnish telecommunications operators Cinia, said he had discovered minor damage to his optical cable, but added that he was still functioning as usual.

Cinia also said it is the third time this cable has been damaged in recent months.

The cable was Torn in November last yearS

In the last few months, there has been an increase in damage to the underwater infrastructure in the Baltic Sea, largely caused by civilian ships that drag their anchors through cables.

Swedish police said “the preliminary investigation is referring to a suspect sabotage.” The Swedish Coast Guard said they did not know when the damage had occurred.

“We have a ship called KBV 003 on the way east of Gotland. It is in the Swedish economic zone and we are helping in the crime scene investigation,” the Coast Guard added.

European leaders suspect that Russian participation in violations.

However, it has been found that bad weather, inadequate equipment and human errors are responsible for some damage.

The Bulgarian ship Vezhen was cleared of sabotage by the Swedish authorities earlier this month.