An undersea fiber optic cable between Latvia and Sweden was damaged on Sunday morning, probably due to “external influences”. The Latvian public broadcaster LSM reported this based on national authorities and information from the cable operator. The damage would be “significant”, Latvian Prime Minister Evika Silina said.
Latvia’s navy has sent a patrol boat to inspect a “suspicious” ship in the Baltic Sea that may have caused damage to the data cable. Two other ships in the area are also under investigation, the Latvian Navy said. The navy is in contact with NATO.
The suspected vessel is a cargo ship named Michalis San. The ship flies the flag of Malta and, according to the AP news agency, is on its way to Russia. It is according to tracker sites now silent in the Baltic Sea.
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‘Russian sabotage’
It is not the first time that submarine fiber optic cables have been targeted for sabotage. Underwater cables form the backbone of the internet, but are also vulnerable. Western leaders have long pointed to Russia damaging or sabotaging the cables for espionage.
At the end of December last year, NATO increased its military presence in the Baltic Sea to protect infrastructure after communications cables between Estonia and Finland were damaged by a ship. The same ship had also carried out suspicious activities off the Dutch coast in 2023, research showed earlier this month NRC.
Prime Minister Silina has summoned her government members for an emergency meeting. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson also wrote in a message on X that there are “indications that at least one data cable” has been damaged, and that he is in close contact with his Latvian counterpart. The Swedish navy told Reuters it was too early to say what caused the damage and whether it was intentional.
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