Sabotage at the bottom of the Baltic

A unit that sailed from the Russian port in St. Petersburg to the port in Haifa was detained by the Finnish Coast defender and directed to the port of Kantvik, where an investigation into the harm to critical infrastructure was initiated. After questioning 14 crew members – citizens of Russia, Georgia, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, the Finnish police arrested 2 of them and another 2 banned leaving the country. Their identities and duties on the ship were not revealed.

Finnish president Alexander Stubb commented on the situation on social media: “Finland is prepared for and responds to various challenges if necessary.” This message underlines that Helsinki takes the problem seriously, not only as a local shipping incident, but besides as a possible threat to national and regional security.

On the another hand, Estonia's President, Alar Karis, expressed concerns about the increasing number of specified events: "I am afraid about the harm reported – let's hope it wasn't deliberate, but the investigation will explain it," he added in an entry on the X platform.

The damaged cable belonged to Finnish operator Elisa and was considered a key part of the network linking the Nordic countries to the Baltic. The operator confirmed that the data traffic was targeted at another routes, which reduced the direct impact on end-users. At the same time, it was not the only cable that the operator informed about the problems that day. Independent failures in the region besides caused interruptions in connections operated by Swedish company Arelion.

Tracks lead to Russia...

The Fitburg case fits into a broader pattern of incidents related to the Baltic offshore infrastructure. Since 2023, many harm to telecommunications, power and pipelines has been reported in this area. 1 of the most celebrated cases was the oil tanker case. Eagle S, which in December 2024 damaged among others Estlink 2, an energy cable connecting Estonia to Finland, which sparked discussions about possible sabotage.

Many NATO analysts and officials identify these events as elements of hybrid threats, covering activities below the threshold of an open armed conflict aimed at weakening the safety and resilience of Western critical infrastructure.

Russia, after an invasion of Ukraine in 2022, was at the centre of attention in the context of specified incidents. Although authoritative centres in Moscow deny participation in targeted sabotage, analysis of many cases – from cable harm to mysterious infrastructure explosions in the Baltic Sea – in many safety experts' opinion strongly resembles the intentions of Russians.

Undersea fibre optic and energy cables form the backbone of military and civilian communications. Their harm can origin local interference, hinder coordination of military and civilian actions and make intellectual effect – even without formal war.

As an Answer NATO increased naval presence and maritime traffic monitoring, and the Baltic States are developing critical infrastructure protection procedures and intelligence exchange platforms.