SLICE & DICE
Fears grow of Russian sabotage as ANOTHER deep sea comms cable is mysteriously cut amid warnings of ‘hybrid warfare’
A cybersecurity professor suspects the Kremlin could have 'enough motives' to cause a disruption
A SECOND vital undersea internet cable has suddenly been mysteriously cut - sparking fears of Russian sabotage.
The 1,200km cable from Finland to Germany stopped working on Monday - less than a day after the link from Lithuania and Sweden's Gotland Island went out of service.
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The suspected sabotage in the Baltic Sea comes just days after one of Vladimir Putin's ships was caught off Britain's coast.
And just weeks ago, the US warned it had detected increased Russian military activity around key undersea cables.
The cable cutting happened in the same waterway where authorities previously probed potentially malicious incidents - including damage to a gas pipeline last year.
At around 2am on Monday, the cable connecting Helsinki to the German port of Rostock stopped working, Finnish state-controlled cyber security and telecoms company Cinia said.
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And a 218-km internet link between Lithuania and Sweden's Gotland Island went out of service at about 8am on Sunday, according to Lithuania's Telia Lietuva, part of Sweden's Telia Company group.
Finland and Germany said they were "deeply concerned about the severed undersea cable".
The two countries added they were investigating "an incident (that) immediately raises suspicions of intentional damage".
Authorities in Helsinki and Berlin also said Europe's security is threatened by Russia's war in Ukraine and "hybrid warfare by malicious actors".
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The joint statement added: "Safeguarding our shared critical infrastructure is vital to our security and the resilience of our societies."
Located in northern Europe, the Baltic Sea is an active commercial shipping route and is ringed by nine countries including Russia.
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The damage to the Finland-Germany cable occurred near the southern tip of Sweden's Oland Island and could require five to 15 days to repair, Cinia's chief executive Ari-Jussi Knaapila said.
It is the only direct connection of its kind between Finland and central Europe and runs alongside other key pieces of infrastructure, including gas pipelines and power cables.
To prevent relying too much on a single link, the most vital data flows are typically carried over many cables.
Last year a subsea gas pipeline and several telecoms cables running along the bottom of the Baltic Sea were severely damaged in an incident raising alarm bells in the region.
Investigators of the 2023 cases in Finland and Estonia named a Chinese container ship that they believe dragged its anchor and caused the damage.
But they have not said whether the damage was accidental or intentional.
In 2022 the Nord Stream gas pipelines linking Russia to Germany in the Baltic Sea were destroyed by explosions in a case that remains under investigation by German authorities.
Tapio Frantti, a cybersecurity professor at the University of Jyväskylä, says the cable rupture between Finland and Germany was most likely purposeful rather than accidental - and that Russia could have enough motives for a planned disruption.
He told : "If you look at this from the point of view of probability, then yes, this is on the side of intentionality.
"When a cable breaks, it raises questions as to why it happened [and] who might have a motive to do something like this.
"They [Russia] really seem to think that they have a special right to do such things. The motive for sabotage is usually that it’s done because it can be done."
Frantti added that, while the implications of a single cable break are minor, it would be concerning if the act was found to be intentional.
He continued: "It comes to mind that this could be a practice for a larger-scale act if there is a need for that."
The cable issues comes just days after a Russian spy ship was caught lurking off the UK coast near pipelines and internet cables.
LURKING AROUND
Royal Navy warships and RAF Poseidon spy planes shadowed the Russian spy ship Yantar which had steamed into the Irish Sea last Thursday.
The research ship was spotted lurking over cables midway between Dublin and Liverpool.
And it came days after a warship armed with hypersonic missiles passed through the Channel.
Yantar was sailing with the Golkovo - described as Putin's "most dangerous" ship - before breaking off and sailing into the Irish Sea.
It is understood she was then monitored by recon planes and minehunter HMS Cattistock, reported .
Yantar is believed to be armed with state-of-the-art stealth subs designed to interfere with key communication infrastructure.
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It has previously been warned that vital undersea cables could be used to cripple Britain.
Yantar - a 5,700-ton vessel - briefly activated its Automatic Identification System (AIS) on Thursday to reveal its location.
The Project 22010-class intelligence ship has previously been monitored as she has often lingered around the coast of the UK.
Meanwhile, the United States previously warned of an increasing risk of Russian "sabotage" of key undersea cables by a secretive military unit.
AMERICA'S WARNING
Two officials they think there is a greater chance that the Kremlin will launch sabotage operations to take down a vital component of the global communications infrastructure.
Russia has bolstered a specialised unit, the "General Staff Main Directorate for Deep Sea Research" (GUGI), which deploys surface ships, submarines, and naval drones.
“We are concerned about heightened Russian naval activity worldwide and that Russia’s decision calculus for damaging US and allied undersea critical infrastructure may be changing,” a US official said, noting GUGI’s focus on undersea sabotage.
US surveillance frequently tracks Russian ships near critical maritime infrastructure far from Russian territory.
Undersea cables, which carry most global internet and communications traffic, are vital to government, military, and economic operations.
Their disruption could significantly impact industries such as finance and energy as the cables also transmit electricity between European countries.
The US and allies monitor Russian naval activity around these cables.
NATO commanders in 2023 reported increased Russian activity in the Baltic Sea, mirroring findings from Nordic public broadcasters, which identified a fleet of suspected Russian spy ships mapping undersea sites for sabotage.
Similar activity by China’s Navy around Taiwan has also been reported, described as potential preparation for isolating the island.
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Despite the war in Ukraine, Russia continues to prioritise GUGI’s operations.
“Any activities damaging seabed infrastructure, including undersea cables, during heightened tensions risk misunderstandings and unintended escalation,” a US official warned, calling such sabotage a significant escalation in Russian aggression.
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