Nate Ostiller, The Kyiv Independent news desk
Thu, October 19, 2023
NATO announced on Oct. 19 that it will ramp up patrols of the Baltic Sea after an underwater pipeline connecting Finland to Estonia was found to be damaged on Oct. 8 in a likely deliberate act.
The heightened surveillance will include "reconnaissance flights, including with maritime patrol aircraft, NATO AWACS planes, and drones (as well as) a fleet of four NATO minehunters," the announcement said.
“NATO will continue to adapt its maritime posture in the Baltic Sea and will take all necessary steps to keep Allies safe,” said acting NATO spokesperson Dylan White.
The 77-kilometer Finland-Estonia pipeline, known as the Balticconnector, was found to be leaking gas in Finnish waters of the Baltic Sea and shut off on Oct. 8. A nearby telecommunications cable was also damaged.
Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo told reporters at a news conference the same day that the damage “could not have occurred as a result of normal use of the pipe or pressure fluctuations."
In addition, Finnish President Sauli Niinisto said that "the cause of the damage is not yet clear," but is likely "the result of external activity.”
The Baltic Sea has been under higher scrutiny for security threats after explosions damaged the Nord Stream pipeline in September 2022. Although the cause of the explosions has not been definitively proven, investigators found that the explosions were caused by deliberate sabotage. On Sept. 28, 2022, the Times newspaper reported, citing a British defense source, that Russia had likely carried out the attack with an underwater drone.
Danish naval vessels confirmed seeing a Russian SS-750 specialized vessel, which carries a submarine on board, close to the site of the pipeline just days before it was damaged.
Russia has denied any role in the Nord Stream sabotage.
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Estonia to probe Sweden cable damage as part of Baltic Sea incident investigation
Andrius Sytas and Marie Mannes
Updated Thu, October 19, 2023
Finnish Border Guard's offshore patrol vessel Turva guarding near the place where damaged Balticconnector gas pipeline is pinpointed at the Gulf of Finland
By Andrius Sytas and Marie Mannes
VILNIUS/STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Estonia said on Thursday it would probe the damage on a Baltic Sea telecoms cable connecting the country to Sweden as part of its ongoing investigation about the rupture caused on another telecoms cable, connecting Tallinn with Helsinki.
On Oct.8 a gas pipeline and telecoms cable connecting Finland and Estonia were broken, in what Finnish investigators believe may have been deliberate sabotage. Helsinki is investigating the pipeline incident, while Tallinn is probing the cable incident.
On Tuesday, Sweden said a third link had been damaged at roughly the same time as the other two.
On Thursday, a spokesperson for the Estonian Prosecutor General said the Baltic country's probe would be expanded to include both telecoms cable incidents, in a move showing a potential link between the two was being considered.
"The circumstances of damage to the communications cables between Estonia-Finland and Estonia-Sweden are similar," the spokesperson told Reuters.
HUMAN ACTION?
The Swedish government has been informed by Estonia that the damage to the telecommunication cable linking the two countries had resulted from "outside physical impact", daily Aftonbladet reported, citing Swedish Defence Minister Pal Jonson.
A Swedish naval vessel, submarine rescue ship Belos, had been sent to the area and Jonson told the newspaper he expected the Swedish military to provide an initial preliminary analysis of the investigation at the site within 24 hours.
"We can't rule out anything at this stage," Jonson was quoted as saying.
The Swedish defence minister's and Estonian Prosecutor General's staff did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests to confirm the comments.
The Prosecutor General spokesman said earlier on Thursday they have not yet determined whether the damage to this cable "was caused by human actions".
CHECKING VESSELS
Separately, Finnish police said they had completed their crime scene investigation into the damage on the pipeline, without giving further details.
On the same day Estonia said it surveyed the extent of the damage to the Estonia-Finland telecom cable, and will soon have more information about its nature and causes.
"We are working on different investigative versions and will continue to check all important circumstances, including data related to the vessels that were in the area at the time of the events", the Prosecutor General spokesman said.
The most recently reported incident, on the Sweden-Estonia cable, occurred in the afternoon of Oct. 7, an executive at Arelion, the owner and operator of the cable, told Reuters.
Mattias Fridstrom, Arelion's manager in charge of security discussions with authorities, declined to give an exact time, citing the ongoing investigation.
He said traffic was quickly restored as the cable was only partially cut, adding a ship was waiting for good weather to sail to the site and conduct repairs.
(Reporting by Andrius Sytas in Vilnius and Marie Mannes and Niklas Pollard in Stockholm; editing by Gwladys Fouche and Jonathan Oatis)
Finnish police complete on-site probe at damaged Baltic Sea pipeline
Reuters
Thu, October 19, 2023
FILE PHOTO: Finnish Border Guard's offshore patrol vessel Turva guarding near the place where damaged Balticconnector gas pipeline is pinpointed at the Gulf of Finland
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) -Finnish police said on Thursday they had completed their crime scene investigation into the damage to a subsea gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia.
The Balticconnector pipeline linking Finland and Estonia ruptured earlier this month in what authorities said may have been a deliberate act of sabotage, cutting off the flow of gas between the two countries until April at least.
Police said in a statement samples collected at the site in cooperation with Finland's armed forces and coast guard would now be analysed.
"Although the scene investigation into the damage in the gas pipeline has been completed, investigations and the presence of authorities still continue in the area," the Finnish National Bureau of Investigation said.
"Subsequently the area surrounding the damage will be widely examined," they added.
(Reporting by Anna Ringstrom, editing by Terje Solsvik)
Thu, October 19, 2023
FILE PHOTO: Finnish Border Guard's offshore patrol vessel Turva guarding near the place where damaged Balticconnector gas pipeline is pinpointed at the Gulf of Finland
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) -Finnish police said on Thursday they had completed their crime scene investigation into the damage to a subsea gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia.
The Balticconnector pipeline linking Finland and Estonia ruptured earlier this month in what authorities said may have been a deliberate act of sabotage, cutting off the flow of gas between the two countries until April at least.
Police said in a statement samples collected at the site in cooperation with Finland's armed forces and coast guard would now be analysed.
"Although the scene investigation into the damage in the gas pipeline has been completed, investigations and the presence of authorities still continue in the area," the Finnish National Bureau of Investigation said.
"Subsequently the area surrounding the damage will be widely examined," they added.
(Reporting by Anna Ringstrom, editing by Terje Solsvik)
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