Latest news with #Navibulgar
Yahoo
31-01-2025
- Yahoo
Norway releases Russian-crewed ship after cable damage
Police in Norway said Friday they had released a Russian-crewed cargo ship seized over suspected involvement in damage to a fibre-optic cable in the Baltic Sea, having found no evidence linking it to the incident. It was the latest development in a series of suspected acts of sabotage that many officials believe form part of a Russian "hybrid war" against Western allies of Ukraine since Moscow launched its invasion in February 2022. The Norway-flagged "Silver Dania" was sailing between Saint Petersburg and Murmansk when a Norwegian coastguard ship stopped it late Thursday off the coast of Tromso in northern Norway. The seizure came after Sweden and Latvia said Sunday that a fibre-optic cable linking the Swedish island of Gotland to Ventspils in Latvia had been damaged -- the latest of several similar incidents in the Baltic in recent months. "No findings have been made linking the ship to the act," police attorney Ronny Jorgensen said in a statement. "The investigation will continue, but we see no reason for the ship to remain in Tromso any longer," he added. Nations around the Baltic Sea have scrambled to bolster their defences over the suspected sabotage of undersea cables in recent months. - 'Nothing wrong' - The ship's owner rejected any wrongdoing as Norwegian police searched the ship and questioned the all-Russian crew, following a seizure request from Latvia. Jorgensen, the police prosecutor, had said a crew member was suspected of involvement in the cable damage, which he described as "aggravated vandalism". The Silver Dania is owned by Norwegian shipping company Silver Sea, whose chief Tormod Fossmark told AFP that "We sailed near Gotland... but we did not cast anchor. "We did nothing wrong," he added. "Norwegian authorities have brought us into port to clear us of any involvement." The Russian embassy in Oslo had told AFP by email that none of the sailors had been placed under arrest nor had they contacted the embassy for assistance. - Bulgarian ship under investigation - On Sunday, the Swedish coastguard seized a Bulgarian ship, the Malta-flagged "Vezhen", off Sweden's southeastern coast in connection with the same cable incident. Swedish prosecutors have opened an investigation into "aggravated sabotage", and images of the vessel published by Swedish media appeared to show that one of its anchors had a broken arm. Alexander Kalchev, CEO of Navibulgar, the Bulgarian maritime shipping company that operates the Vezhen, denied any involvement. "I am convinced that we cannot say... that this was a malicious act," he said. But prosecutor Mats Ljungqvist told Swedish news agency TT on Friday that he was confident the Vezhen was involved. "I think I can say, on very solid grounds, that it is this ship that has damaged the cable," he said. "Our work is continuing... The ship is still seized and there are various investigative measures being taken, including technical examinations," he said. The incident is the latest in a series affecting cables in the Baltic Sea amid heightened tensions between Russia and the West since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. Finland and Sweden, which both border the Baltic Sea, have dropped decades of military non-alignment to join NATO as concern about the region's security mounts. Russia had warned both countries of repercussions if they joined the alliance. In September 2022, a series of underwater blasts ruptured the Nord Stream pipelines that carried Russian gas to Europe. The cause is yet to be determined. In October 2023, an undersea gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia was shut down after it was damaged by the anchor of a Chinese cargo ship. In November 2024, two telecom cables in Swedish waters were severed, and on December 25, the Estlink 2 electricity cable and four telecom cables linking Finland and Estonia were damaged. In response, NATO launched in mid-January a Baltic Sea patrol mission to secure critical underwater infrastructure. Frigates, maritime patrol aircraft, submarines and drones are involved in the Baltic Sentry patrols. phy/js/jj
MTV Lebanon
27-01-2025
- MTV Lebanon
Sweden intercepts Bulgarian ship over damaged Baltic cable
The Swedish coast guard seized a Bulgarian ship after a fibre-optic cable under the Baltic Sea linking Sweden to Latvia was damaged, officials said on Monday. Latvia sent a warship on Sunday to investigate the damage, while Swedish prosecutors opened an "aggravated sabotage" investigation. Nations around the Baltic Sea have scrambled to bolster defences after the suspected sabotage of undersea cables in recent months, with some observers blaming Russia. The Swedish coast guard on Sunday instructed the Bulgarian ship Vezhen "to go into their territorial waters and it is now on anchor where an investigation... is ongoing," Alexander Kalchev, CEO of Navigation Maritime Bulgare (Navibulgar), the ship's operator, told AFP. Images of the vessel published by Swedish media appeared to show a broken arm on one of Vezhen's anchors. Kalchev denied involvement in any sabotage. "I am convinced that we cannot say... that this was a malicious act," he added. The Malta-flagged vessel carrying fertilizer from Ust-Luga in Russia and headed for South America was sailing in "extremely bad weather" on Saturday based on the information given to him by the crew, Kalchev said. An inspection on Sunday found that "one of the ship's anchors was damaged and the anchor had dropped into the sea, which means that it was possible that it had dragged along the seafloor," he said, adding that the anchor was then pulled up. The Swedish prosecutor in charge of the case, Mats Ljungqvist, told AFP that "the ship suspected of aggravated sabotage" was currently located off the coast of Karlskrona, near the small island of Aspo, but would not confirm the vessel's name. According to marine traffic websites, the Vezhen is anchored at that location, with two Swedish coast guard vessels next to it. "Staff from several Swedish authorities" have been on board the vessel since Sunday evening as part of the investigation, Ljungqvist said. He said that the the case was "primarily being handled by" the Sapo intelligence agency. Navibulgar, Bulgaria's biggest shipping company, has appointed an agent in Sweden and hired a lawyer "to defend the interests of the crew and the company", which extends its "full support" in the probe, according to Kalchev. The ship -- constructed in 2022 -- has a crew of eight Bulgarians and nine Myanmar nationals. Kalchev confirmed media reports that the ship was leased from Chinese company Hai Kuo Shipping, but said that it "has no control over the ship in any way". The damage to the cable occurred in Swedish territorial waters at a depth of at least 50 metres (164 feet), officials said. The cable belongs to Latvia's state radio and television centre (LVRTC) which said in a statement on Sunday that there had been "disruptions in data transmission services". The company said that alternatives had been found and end users would mostly not be affected, although "there may be delays in data transmission speeds". Prime Minister Evika Silina said on Sunday that Riga had notified the Swedish authorities and that the two countries were working together on the incident. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson confirmed on Sunday that he had been in contact with Silina, and said that Sweden, Latvia and NATO were closely cooperating on the matter. Experts and politicians have accused Russia of orchestrating a hybrid war against the West as the two sides square off over Ukraine. NATO this month announced it was launching a new monitoring mission in the Baltic Sea involving ships and aircraft to deter attempts to target undersea infrastructure. European Union President Ursula von der Leyen expressed "full solidarity" with countries affected by the incident. "The resilience and security of our critical infrastructure is a top priority," von der Leyen wrote on X.
Voice of America
27-01-2025
- Voice of America
Sweden intercepts Bulgarian ship over damaged Baltic cable
The Swedish coast guard chased and intercepted a Bulgarian ship after a fiber-optic cable under the Baltic Sea linking Sweden to Latvia was damaged, its owner said on Monday. Latvia sent a warship on Sunday to investigate the damage, while Swedish prosecutors opened an "aggravated sabotage" investigation. Nations around the Baltic Sea have scrambled to bolster defenses after the suspected sabotage of undersea cables in recent months, with some observers blaming Russia. The Bulgarian vessel on Sunday "was chased by the Swedish coast guard with instructions for the ship to go into their territorial waters and it is now on anchor where an investigation ... is ongoing," Alexander Kalchev, CEO of Navigation Maritime Bulgare (Navibulgar), owner of the Vezhen, told AFP. He denied involvement in any sabotage. "I am convinced that we cannot say ... that this was a malicious act," he added. The Malta-flagged vessel carrying fertilizer from Ust-Luga in Russia and headed for South America was sailing in "extremely bad weather" on Saturday based on the information given to him by the crew, Kalchev said. An inspection on Sunday found that "one of the ship's anchors was damaged and the anchor had dropped into the sea, which means that it was possible that it had dragged along the sea floor," he said, adding the anchor was then pulled up. 'Full solidarity' Navibulgar, Bulgaria's biggest shipping company, said it had appointed an agent in Sweden and hired a lawyer "to defend the interests of the crew and the company." The ship, constructed in 2022, has a crew of eight Bulgarians and nine Myanmar nationals. "Staff from the Swedish authorities have been on board the ship since yesterday evening to carry out investigative measures," an intelligence official told AFP. The damage to the cable occurred in Swedish territorial waters at a depth of at least 50 meters, officials said. The cable belongs to Latvia's state radio and television center (LVRTC) which said in a statement that there had been "disruptions in data transmission services." The company said alternatives had been found and end users would mostly not be affected although "there may be delays in data transmission speeds." Latvia's navy on Sunday said it had identified a "suspect vessel," the Michalis San, near the location of the incident along with two other ships. Prime Minister Evika Silina said Riga had notified the Swedish authorities and that the two countries were working together on the incident. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson confirmed he had been in contact with Silina during the day, and Sweden, Latvia and NATO are closely cooperating on the matter. Experts and politicians have accused Russia of orchestrating a hybrid war against the West as the two sides square off over Ukraine. NATO this month announced it was launching a new monitoring mission in the Baltic Sea involving ships and aircraft to deter attempts to target undersea infrastructure. European Union President Ursula von der Leyen expressed "full solidarity" with countries affected by the incident. "The resilience and security of our critical infrastructure is a top priority," von der Leyen wrote on X.
The Independent
27-01-2025
- The Independent
A Bulgarian shipping company denies its vessel sabotaged a Baltic Sea cable
A Bulgarian shipping company on Monday denied that one of its ships had intentionally damaged an underwater fiber optic cable connecting Latvia and the Swedish island of Gotland. In a statement, Navibulgar CEO Alexander Kalchev said it was possible that the Vezhen ship had caused a cable to break but dismissed any possibility of sabotage or any other action on the part of the crew. He cited information obtained from the crew that the ship was sailing late on Sunday in extremely bad weather. Eventually, the crew discovered that the left anchor was apparently being dragged along the seabed. Kalchev's statement followed the announcement that Swedish prosecutors had launched a preliminary investigation on suspicion of sabotage, after the ship was detained in the Baltic Sea. He added that the automatic ship identification system clearly showed that the Vezhen passed over the cable, and that it was not clear when exactly it was cut. 'I hope that the investigators will quickly establish that this is not a matter of any intentional action, but a technical incident due to bad weather, and that the ship will be released,' Kalchev said. The Maltese-flagged Vezhen was sailing to South America, loaded with fertilizer. The 32,000-ton vessel was launched in 2022, Kalchev said.
Yahoo
27-01-2025
- Yahoo
A Bulgarian shipping company denies its vessel sabotaged a Baltic Sea cable
SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — A Bulgarian shipping company on Monday denied that one of its ships had intentionally damaged an underwater fiber optic cable connecting Latvia and the Swedish island of Gotland. In a statement, Navibulgar CEO Alexander Kalchev said it was possible that the Vezhen ship had caused a cable to break but dismissed any possibility of sabotage or any other action on the part of the crew. He cited information obtained from the crew that the ship was sailing late on Sunday in extremely bad weather. Eventually, the crew discovered that the left anchor was apparently being dragged along the seabed. Kalchev's statement followed the announcement that Swedish prosecutors had launched a preliminary investigation on suspicion of sabotage, after the ship was detained in the Baltic Sea. He added that the automatic ship identification system clearly showed that the Vezhen passed over the cable, and that it was not clear when exactly it was cut. 'I hope that the investigators will quickly establish that this is not a matter of any intentional action, but a technical incident due to bad weather, and that the ship will be released,' Kalchev said. The Maltese-flagged Vezhen was sailing to South America, loaded with fertilizer. The 32,000-ton vessel was launched in 2022, Kalchev said.
