Subsea cable repaired after likely sabotage

Telia Lietuva has announced the repair of a major subsea cable running between Lithuania and Sweden in the Baltic Sea.

The damage originally occurred on 17th November, affecting one of three vital communications links between Sweden and Lithuania. Another cable that connects Helsinki, Finland and Rostock, Germany, was also severed on the same day.

Investigations have pointed towards potential foul play involving a Chinese-flagged vessel that set sail from the Russian port of Ust-Luga. Authorities suspect that the vessel, named Yi Peng 3, may have deliberately severed the undersea cables by dragging its anchor.

Sweden has formally reached out to China, requesting cooperation in the comprehensive investigation into the subsea cable damage.

Ulf Kristersson, Prime Minister of Sweden, said during a Thursday press conference: “Sweden has also sent a formal request to China to cooperate with Swedish authorities in order to create clarity on what has happened.”

The Swedish government has also suggested that the Chinese vessel, which is currently surrounded by Danish and German ships in international waters, return to Swedish waters to aid the inquiry.

The cables between Sweden and Lithuania and another between Germany and Finland were severed in Swedish waters in the Baltic Sea last week. This sequence of events has spurred allegations of sabotage, highlighting concerns surrounding the Yi Peng 3’s actions. 

In a joint statement, the foreign ministers of Finland and Germany expressed their “deep concern” over the damaged cables connecting their countries.

Though the joint statement omitted direct references to China, it highlighted that “European security is not only under threat from Russia‘s war of aggression against Ukraine, but also from hybrid warfare by malicious actors.”

Last year, a similar incident occurred to critical infrastructure when the vessel Newnew Polar Bear damaged a gas pipeline and data cable between Sweden and Estonia.

As the investigation unfolds, the alleged sabotages in the Baltic Sea has once again raised awareness of the vulnerabilities of subsea infrastructure and the need to safeguard vital communication lines.

(Photo by Marek Rucinski)

See also: Denmark suffers major telecoms service outage

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Tags: broadband, china, communications, connectivity, europe, finland, germany, infrastructure, lithuania, network, russia, Security, subsea cable, sweden, telecoms, underwater cable, yi peng 3