Chinese ship with Russian captain stops after Baltic Sea cables mysteriously break
Two key undersea cables in Baltic Sea stopped working within 24hrs. Danish navy now watches Chinese vessel Yi Peng 3 which passed through damaged area on its way from Russian port
In mid-november 2024 two important undersea cables broke in Baltic Sea leaving some countries without direct data links. First cable connecting Sweden and Lithuania went offline then the only line between Finland and Germany stopped working too
The damage happened at cables crossing point which is just 10 square-meters wide (making accidental damage very unlikely). Boris Pistorius German defense minister pointed to probable sabotage: experts agree with his view
Moscowʼs escalating hybrid activities against NATO and EU countries are also unprecedented in their variety and scale creating significant security risks
Investigation quickly found Chinese ship Yi Peng 3 with its Russian captain passing through the area. The vessel left Russiaʼs Ust-Luga port and went near both damaged spots before heading to Atlantic ocean
- Previous year similar damage by Chinese ship Newnew Polar Bear
- Two Taiwan cables cut by Chinese vessels in early-2023
- Multiple NATO countries now track undersea threats
Danish navy caught up with Yi Peng 3 in Kattegat strait – the ship sits there now between Danish and Swedish coasts. Even though UN laws protect undersea installations; its hard to prove who ordered the damage or take action against possible state-backed sabotage
Legal experts say current maritime rules dont cover non-military threats to infrastructure. While investigators work on criminal case against ships crew; bigger question remains: how to stop future attacks on sea-based communication lines
