Inclusion of Damaged Russian Telecommunications Cable in Baltic’s Underwater Infrastructure List

Russia is repairing a telecommunications cable in the Baltic Sea that failed last month, according to Finland. The cable, owned by Rostelecom, runs from the St. Petersburg region to the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad. This comes after a gas pipeline connecting Finland and Estonia and two telecommunications cables connecting Estonia with Finland and Sweden were also damaged last month. Finnish police believe the damage to the gas pipeline was caused by a Chinese container ship dragging its anchor, but they have not determined whether it was accidental or deliberate. The Finnish Coast Guard believes there may be a connection between the Russian cable failure and the previously reported damage.

The Russian company first reported the failure of its telecommunications cable to Finnish authorities on October 12, four days after the gas pipeline and other cables were discovered to be damaged. The Finnish Border Guard is monitoring a Russian salvage ship, the Spasatel Karev, as it carries out repairs to the cable. The Finnish coast guard ship Turva is also nearby. In September 2022, the Nord Stream gas pipelines connecting Germany and Russia in the Baltic Sea were damaged by explosions that authorities said were deliberate acts of sabotage, though there was disagreement over who was responsible.

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