By Anne Kauranen
HELSINKI (Reuters) – The crew aboard an oil tanker accused of sabotaging undersea power and communications cables in the Baltic Sea were about to cut other cables and pipelines when Finnish authorities boarded the ship last month , said the head of the Finnish investigation.
Baltic Sea countries are on high alert after a series of disruptions to power cables, telecom connections and gas pipelines since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. Leaders of NATO member states around the Baltic Sea will meet in Helsinki on Tuesday to discuss the alliance’s response. to the threat.
On December 26, Finnish authorities seized oil tanker Eagle S carrying Russian oil. They said they suspected the ship had damaged the Finnish-Estonian Estlink 2 power line and four telecom cables by dragging its anchor more than 100 km along the seabed.
The head of the investigation, Risto Lohi of the National Bureau of Investigation, told Reuters that the ship threatened to cut a second power cable, Estlink1, and the BalticConnector gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia at the time it was seized.
“There would have been an almost immediate danger that other cables or pipes associated with our critical underwater infrastructure could have been damaged,” he said.
Lohi said a ninth crew member from the ship had been added to a list of those treated as suspects and banned from travelling. Finland announced earlier this month that eight of the 24 crew members were banned from traveling. The ship’s captain is Georgian and the crew are citizens of India and Georgia.
“We have interviewed and questioned the crew, and at this time we have nine crew members as suspects. They are under a travel ban in this regard to safeguard the investigation,” Lohi said.
“Of course, our priority is the persons whose duties or responsibilities include the navigation of the ship and operations related to the anchors.”
In another incident, Finland and other Baltic Sea countries suspect that a Chinese bulk carrier, Yi Peng 3, dragged its anchor to sever two undersea fiber optic communications cables in November.
Swedish Civil Defense Minister Carl-Oskar Bohlin said on Sunday that authorities had determined that the Chinese ship had also threatened to cut a power cable connecting the Baltic states with the Scandinavian countries.
“We can report today that it has been determined that there are traces of an anchor, probably from Yi Peng 3, also associated with the NordBalt cable, i.e. the connection between Sweden and Lithuania. This clearly illustrates the seriousness of the situation we are in,” he told reporters.
