The police have started a preliminary investigation into sabotage after two cables in the Baltic Sea were damaged.
However, the crime classification may change, according to the police.
– We can state that the Swedish Armed Forces and the Coast Guard have picked up ship movements that correspond in time and space with the interruptions that occurred through their sea situation image. This has caused the police to start a preliminary investigation into suspected sabotage. The situation is of course very serious, says Carl-Oskar Bohlin, minister for civil defense (M) to TV4 Nyheterna.
The police state that they are following the situation and assessing new information to be able to decide what measures to take. Cooperation has also begun with the Coast Guard and the Swedish Armed Forces.
– The crime classification is currently sabotage. The preliminary investigation is ongoing and is at an early stage. There is no further information to provide about the investigation at this time, says state prosecutor Henrik Söderman.
The case is led by prosecutors at the national unit against international and organized crime, and the police also cooperate with the Security Police and other international actors.
Two cables damaged
On Monday, it was discovered that the C-Lion 1 cable between Finland and Germany had broken in the Swedish economic zone outside Öland. Later it was also announced that a data cable between Sweden and Lithuania had been damaged. The Swedish government is following developments and yesterday Finland and Germany also announced that they are investigating the incident as sabotage.
The countries’ data traffic should not have been affected by the events.
The Minister for Civil Defence, Carl-Oscar Bohlin (M), says that he leaves it to the authorities to assess the probability of what has happened, and does not want to comment on what or which actor it is that could possibly be behind the suspected sabotage.
– I cannot go into details regarding the preliminary investigation, those questions must be asked of the police authority, says Carl-Oscar Bohlin.
The minister: “We are in a good position”
The Coast Guard and the Swedish Armed Forces will also assist the police in order to carry out a crime scene investigation on the seabed where the damage occurred. According to Carl-Oscar Bohlin, the investigation of the seabed must be carried out in the near future.
– There is reason to believe that this is serious given the security policy situation we are in, says Bohlin and adds:
– I am glad that the relevant authorities are on their toes, we are in a good position for further work.
The expert: Sabotage cannot be ruled out
According to Hans Liwång, a professor at the Norwegian Defense Academy, he said on Monday that it is most likely to be accidents, even if it cannot be ruled out that sabotage is behind the damaged cables.
– It is difficult to draw any far-reaching conclusions at the moment. Most likely it is an accident or wear and tear, but it cannot be ruled out that there could be a conscious act in one of the two cases, says Hans Liwång.