Crew members of a ship implicated in the wreckage of a Baltic Sea cable face charges for alleged acts of sabotage by Finnish authorities.
In the chilly waters of the Baltic Sea, an incident that occurred in December 2024 has sent ripples of concern throughout the region. A Cook Islands-registered oil tanker, believed to be part of Russia's so-called shadow fleet, was accused of deliberately damaging five undersea cables connecting Finland and Estonia.
The vessel, named the Eagle S, is suspected of dragging its anchor over about 90 kilometers on the seabed in the Gulf of Finland, causing damage to the Estlink 2 submarine power cable and four telecommunications cables. The incident resulted in at least €60 million (about $70 million) in immediate repair costs and posed serious risks to the region's energy supply and telecommunications infrastructure.
Finnish authorities have charged the captain and two senior officers of the Eagle S with aggravated criminal mischief, aggravated interference with communications, and endangering maritime traffic. The accused have denied all charges, arguing that Finland lacks jurisdiction as the damage occurred outside its territorial waters.
Investigators presented evidence including anchor drag marks that matched the ship’s equipment and suspicious navigation behavior, such as turning off the vessel’s tracking system near the incident site. Intelligence and officials suspect these acts may be part of Russian hybrid warfare tactics, using civilian vessels as proxies to avoid direct attribution. Russia has denied any involvement, labeling the allegations as baseless.
The Eagle S is considered part of the shadow fleet composed of old tankers used to circumvent Western sanctions on Russian oil exports. The sabotage incident has raised significant concerns within NATO and European countries about the vulnerabilities of undersea cables and pipelines critical for military, energy, and communication security in the Baltic region.
Finnish authorities had previously highlighted the Chinese-owned vessel Newnew Polar Bear in a separate sabotage incident involving gas pipelines and cables in the Baltic in October 2023, underlining the broader security challenges in the area.
As the investigation continues, further details are expected to be revealed in future court proceedings. The exact motives behind the alleged sabotage are not yet clear, but the incident has undoubtedly raised concerns about security in the Baltic Sea region.
The escalating incident involving the Eagle S, a Cook Islands-registered oil tanker, has sparked intense debate in the realms of politics and general-news, with allegations of aggravated criminal mischief and interference with communications raising questions about potential Russian hybrid warfare tactics. The subsequent charges and denials have further fueled crime-and-justice discussions, equally troubling NATO and European countries about the vulnerabilities of undersea cables and pipelines in the Baltic region.
