Baltic Sea cable mystery: Sawfish or sabotage plot?
The head of the State Duma's defence committee, Andrei Kartapolov, was asked about Russia's involvement in damaging cables in the Baltic Sea. "I think it's a sawfish," the politician mocked. The Russian Foreign Ministry urges people not to seek Moscow's "hand."
Cables connecting Germany with Finland and Lithuania with Sweden in the Baltic Sea were damaged. The head of the State Duma's defence committee, Andrei Kartapolov, suggested that a sawfish was responsible for the incident. "I think it's a sawfish," he mockingly replied to journalists' questions.
The Russian Foreign Ministry, represented by Maria Zakharova, appealed for people not to attribute responsibility to Russia for every incident. Zakharova commented on this in response to Western media publications regarding Russia's possible use of a ship flying under the Chinese flag to sabotage NATO countries' underwater infrastructure.
An act of sabotage?
The Telia company reported damage to an undersea telecommunications cable on the Baltic Sea floor between Lithuania and Sweden on Monday. That same day, the Finnish company Cinia announced a similar cable break connecting Helsinki with Rostock, Germany.
Andrius Semeskevicius from the Lithuanian operator Telia emphasized that both cables were cut, ruling out accidental anchor dropping. German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius suggested it could be an act of sabotage.
Chinese ship under scrutiny
Suspicions fell on the Chinese ship Yi Peng 3, which left the Russian port of Ust-Luga on November 15th. Due to unusual manoeuvres, the ship drew attention from the Danish military. The ship's captain, Russian Aleksander Stechentsev, claimed he left the vessel after an hour and a half into the voyage.
The Stockholm police have launched an investigation into possible sabotage.
The United States had previously warned of increased Russian activity around crucial undersea cables. U.S. officials indicated that the Russian Ministry of Defence is preparing a unit to sabotage NATO countries' communication infrastructure.
