The recent cable damage in the Baltic Sea seems to be linked by a clear pattern, although there may be different causes and factors, says Yelle, adviser to the Latvian Prime Minister.
The latest cable damage in the Baltic Sea and previous cable breaches seem to be linked by a clear pattern, says Latvian Prime Minister’s adviser Yelle.
The communication cable between Latvia and Sweden was damaged in the Baltic Sea on Sunday. The damaged cable runs between Ventspils and Gotland. This was already the fifth pipe or cable damage in the Baltic Sea region in just over two years.
– It can be different reasons and factors, but it is difficult not to see a clear tendency, says Airis RikveilisPrime Minister of Latvia Evika Siliņa national security adviser in an interview with .
According to Rikveilis, Latvia currently does not want to assess whether a state actor is behind Sunday’s cable damage.
According to him, the most important thing now is to get to examine the damaged cable.
– We want a more detailed picture of the seabed to understand how the damage occurred. Was it a ship or are there perhaps some other possibilities, says Rikveilis.
Rikveilis does not want to speculate on what the other possibilities would be exactly. According to him, such information can be obtained in the coming days. Nothing can be ruled out at the moment, he says.
During the next few days, maritime surveillance data from ships that have passed near the damaged area during the last night will also be analysed.
– We have to look at how these ships are connected to different operators, says Rikveilis.
“We have received enormous support”
The Latvian government says that it is cooperating with the Baltic Sea countries, the military alliance NATO and the European Union in the investigation of the case.
Rikveilis says that the board worked closely with Swedish, Lithuanian, Estonian and Finnish colleagues on Sunday and considered what the next steps would be.
– We have received enormous support from all parties, promises to help in researching the event and also in accessing the event area.
A more accurate assessment of what concrete help from Finland and other countries could be is a matter of the coming days, says Rikveilis.
According to him, support for repairing the cable will probably come from either Finland or Sweden or both.
The sustainability and safety of critical infrastructure is a top priority for all the governments of the Baltic Sea countries, says Rikveilis.
– Because of this, we need to strengthen NATO’s capabilities in this regard, as well as the EU’s possible countermeasures.
– Latvia has always supported a proactive way of responding to these incidents and damages.