The optical fiber cable between Ventspils in Latvia and Gotland in Sweden broke on Sunday morning in Swedish territorial waters.
The latest cable damage in the Baltic Sea occurred between Latvia and Sweden early Sunday morning. The damaged communication cable runs between Ventspils and Gotland.
The damage to the communication cable between Latvia and Sweden was already the sixth pipe or cable damage in the Baltic Sea region in just over two years.
Which cable at the bottom of the Baltic Sea was damaged this time?
The telecommunications cable is managed by Latvia’s state television and radio center LVTRC, but the damaged part of the cable is located in Sweden’s economic zone. According to LVTRC, the damage to the cable is serious in quality.
What measures have been taken in the Baltic Sea and what are suspected?
On Sunday evening, Sweden seized a ship from the Baltic Sea, which is suspected of gross sabotage. The country’s authorities boarded the ship the night before Monday. Swedish security police Säpo suspects sabotage in the case.
Swedish newspaper Expressen’s according to this, it would be a Vezhen cargo ship registered in Malta. According to the website Marine Traffic, which monitors ship traffic, Vezhen set off from the port of Laukaansuu, or Ust-Luga, on Friday.
LVTRC, which operates the cable, said on Sunday that the company will continue to offer services through alternative data transmission routes. Data transfer speeds may experience delays.
What is NATO doing about it?
Prime Minister of Sweden Ulf Kristersson said yesterday that Sweden, Latvia and NATO are working “closely together” regarding the cable damage.
NATO started a monitoring operation in the Baltic Sea about two weeks ago. Its purpose is to prevent new cable damage and speed up the investigation of possible sabotage.
And what is Finland doing?
President of the Republic Alexander Stubb said on Sunday evening that Finland would support Latvia and Sweden in resolving the cable damage. The Coast Guard has also signaled that they will go to help as soon as the call goes out.
These things are still open
When will the cable be repaired? According to the LVTRC, it is not yet possible to say exactly when the cable lying at a depth of 50 meters will be repaired. There is also no exact information on the extent of the damage.
What finally happened to the cable? The Swedish authorities have seized a vessel suspected of sabotage, but there is still no definite information about which cable has been damaged and whether the act was intentional.
We follow the development of information about the damage of the submarine cable in this updating article.