NATO launches new mission to protect Baltic cables

The undersea infrastructure in the area has been plagued by a string of mysterious incidents and disruptions

The US-led NATO bloc on Tuesday announced the launch of Baltic Sentry, a new mission designed to protect undersea cables in the region.

The development constitutes the latest uptick in the bloc’s military activities on its eastern flank, which have been steadily expanding over the past few years under the pretext of an alleged Russian threat. The mission is being set up after a string of mysterious disruptions and damage to cables in the region, which have been blamed on a Russia-linked ship and a Chinese merchant vessel that allegedly dragged their anchors across the undersea infrastructure and damaged it.

Unveiling the operation, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said it is set to involve frigates, maritime patrol aircraft and a “small fleet of naval drones,” that are expected to provide “enhanced surveillance and deterrence” in the Baltic Sea.

“Across the alliance, we have seen elements of a campaign to destabilize our societies through cyberattacks, assassination attempts and sabotage, including possible sabotage of undersea cables in the Baltic Sea,” Rutte told reporters in Helsinki after NATO’s Summit of Baltic Sea Allies that brought together leaders from Finland, Poland, Denmark, Germany, Sweden, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia.

The new mission is very important, given that more than 95% of internet traffic flows through undersea cables, Rutte noted. “By working together with all allies – we will do what it takes to ensure the safety and security not only of our critical infrastructure but of all that we hold dear,” he said.

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NATO members had already been regularly conducting naval drills in the region, as well as so-called air-policing missions, which routinely involve fighter-jet flyovers close to Russia’s borders that have repeatedly resulted in run-ins with the country’s air force.

Over the past few months, Baltic Sea cables were damaged in a string of mysterious incidents. The occurrences have been linked to a Chinese ship, the Yi Peng 3, which had passed over two cables, allegedly severing them with its anchor dragging across the seabed.

The most recent incident occurred late in December, with a supposedly Russia-linked oil tanker, the Eagle S, allegedly damaging the EstLink 2 power cable, which connects Finland and Estonia. The vessel ended up boarded and seized by Finnish police and border guards, with investigators claiming the ship was missing one of her anchors.