Latest news with #SwedishCoastGuard
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Oil tanker bound for Russia runs aground off Swedish coast
The Swedish Coast Guard is inspecting the Panama-flagged vessel Meshka that has run aground off the Swedish coast while en route to the Russian port of Vysotsk. Source: Swedish public service TV company SVT, as reported by European Pravda Details: The Meshka ran aground near the Swedish port city of Landskrona on Saturday after receiving a warning that it was off course and approaching the shore. On the same day, the Swedish Coast Guard questioned all 24 crew members. None were found to be under the influence of alcohol, and during interrogation, the crew claimed they reacted to the warning too late. Swedish authorities have launched an investigation into possible negligence in maritime navigation, and one crew member was served with a notice of suspicion. The Meshka, sailing under the flag of Panama, was headed to the Russian city of Vysotsk near the Finnish border, carrying approximately 938,000 litres of oil. No oil leaks have been detected so far, and the Swedish Coast Guard continues to monitor the situation. Background: The incident comes shortly after the Swedish government adopted a new regulation aimed at tightening insurance checks on foreign vessels, part of a broader effort to strengthen control over Russia's shadow fleet. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
See - Sada Elbalad
21-02-2025
- Politics
- See - Sada Elbalad
Sweden Reports Damaged Undersea Cable in Baltic Sea
Sweden has reported damage to another undersea cable in the Baltic Sea, near Gotland Island, raising further concerns over the security of critical infrastructure in the region. According to the Swedish Coast Guard, the affected cable connects Finland and Germany and was damaged within Sweden's exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The incident is the latest in a series of disruptions impacting subsea communication lines, power cables, and even gas pipelines. Coast Guard spokesperson Mattias Lindholm confirmed to Bloomberg News that authorities were notified about the cable cut on Thursday, but the exact timing of the incident remains unclear. Swedish officials are en route to assess the damage. In response, the Swedish Prosecution Authority has launched an investigation, while the Swedish Armed Forces have also been informed, according to Swedish news agency TT and TV4. While previous incidents have often been attributed to ships dragging anchors along the seabed, authorities have not publicly confirmed whether this latest event was due to sabotage or negligence. This incident adds to growing concerns over the security of undersea cables, which are vital for global communications, carrying over 95% of international data traffic. These cables are essential for internet connectivity, telecommunications, and financial transactions, making them key targets in modern hybrid warfare scenarios.
New York Times
21-02-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Sweden Investigates New Cable Break Under Baltic Sea
The Swedish authorities said on Friday that they were investigating a new cable break in the Baltic Sea, the latest in a string of suspected acts of sabotage of underwater infrastructure in the region. The Swedish Coast Guard said that it had been informed of the cable break on Thursday and was en route to the area, off the eastern island of Gotland, according to Mattias Lindholm, a spokesman for the service. He said that he did not know what kind of cable had been damaged but that it was not Swedish. He directed questions about the fallout to Finland or Germany. Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson of Sweden said on Friday that his government took 'all reports of possible damage to infrastructure in the Baltic Sea very seriously.' Such reports, he said, had to be seen in light of the 'serious security situation that prevails.' The severing of several undersea cables in the Baltic Sea in recent months has raised concerns that Russia is using the moves to retaliate against NATO countries that have supported Ukraine. Alliance officials have pointed to Russia as a possible culprit, but have said that it is difficult to gather definitive proof. In January, the alliance stepped up its military presence in the area with a new patrol and surveillance operation, called Baltic Sentry, aimed at protecting infrastructure in the sea. Swedish officials said that month that they were investigating what they described as 'gross sabotage' after an undersea communications cable was damaged. This is a developing story and will be updated.
See - Sada Elbalad
27-01-2025
- Politics
- See - Sada Elbalad
Sweden Detains Maltese-Flagged Ship Over Suspected Sabotage of Undersea Cable
Swedish authorities have detained the Maltese-flagged cargo ship Vision, registered under a Bulgarian shipping company, on suspicion of involvement in the sabotage of an undersea fiber-optic cable linking Latvia and Sweden in the Baltic Sea. According to Euronews, the Swedish Coast Guard boarded and detained the vessel after allegations surfaced that it caused damage to the vital communication cable, raising fresh concerns over potential sabotage in the region. The cable operator reported indications suggesting the damage was caused by external forces, prompting Swedish prosecutors to launch a preliminary investigation into possible sabotage. The Vision, a large cargo ship crewed by eight Bulgarian officers and nine Myanmar sailors, is believed to be responsible for the incident. Reports indicate that two days before the incident, the ship departed from the Russian port of Ust-Luga, bound for South America with a load of fertilizers. Alexander Kalchev, the head of the Bulgarian shipping company Navigation Maritime Bulgare, acknowledged the possibility of the ship damaging the cable but dismissed any notion of deliberate sabotage or crew misconduct. This event follows a series of similar incidents reported in the past two months, involving undersea infrastructure between Lithuania and Sweden, Germany and Finland, as well as Estonia and Finland. These disruptions have heightened concerns about hybrid threats, including cyberattacks and physical sabotage, allegedly linked to Russian activities in the Baltic region. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock described the pattern of incidents as more than mere coincidences. 'In the Baltic Sea, GPS signal disruptions and drone surveillance of critical infrastructure have been reported repeatedly,' Baerbock stated, emphasizing that the European Union and NATO have ramped up their security measures in the region over the past weeks. This latest incident underscores the growing vulnerability of undersea infrastructure and the urgent need for coordinated efforts to protect it from hybrid threats.
Yahoo
27-01-2025
- Yahoo
Swedish Coast Guard detains vessel suspected of sabotage in Baltic Sea
Swedish prosecutors announced an investigation into a ship suspected of damaging undersea cables after it was detained by the Swedish Coast Guard, the AP news agency reported on Jan. 27. According to information obtained by the AP from a ship-tracker software, the Malta-flagged Vezhen departed from the Russian port of Ust-Luga several days earlier and was navigating near the site of damage. An underwater fiber-optic cable belonging to the Latvian State Radio and Television Broadcasting Center (LVRTC) was significantly damaged on Jan. 26, reportedly due to external impact, according to LVRTC representative Vineta Sprugaine. The accident came as the latest amid a series of incidents that have damaged critical cables in the Baltic Sea. The cable connected the Latvian town of Ventspils to Sweden's Gotland island and was located within Sweden's exclusive economic zone, the statement said. Despite the damage, data transmission services continued using alternate routes, with minimal impact on most end users in Latvia aside from slower data transmission speeds. The previous instances of damaged cables had raised fears that Russian shadow fleet vessels were intentionally sabotaging the energy and communication lines. As a result, NATO dispatched additional patrol ships to the area earlier this month. Contradicting these concerns, intelligence services in the U.S. and Europe are increasingly convinced that the incidents were caused by accidents, the Washington Post reported on Jan. 19. Read also: Sweden to increase military presence in Baltic Sea following suspected cable sabotage We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
