Chinese vessel spotted where Baltic Sea cables were severed

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Investigators of two severed data cables in the Baltic Sea are looking at the movements of a Chinese bulk carrier, the second such probe in recent months amid rising jitters in Europe over potential acts of sabotage.

Yi Peng 3, a Chinese-registered vessel that was on its way from the Russian port of Ust-Luga to Port Said in Egypt, passed close to both the Swedish-Lithuanian and Finnish-German cables around the time each was cut on Sunday and Monday, according to data provided by maritime tracking group Marine Traffic. The cargo ship was closely followed by the Danish Navy afterwards, said open source intelligence experts.

Sweden has opened an investigation into both incidents, and is examining what role the Yi Peng 3 might have played, said people familiar with the probe.

“The Swedes are taking a hard look at the Chinese vessel,” said one person with insight into the investigation.

Sweden’s government declined to comment about the Chinese craft. But an official said the police investigation would look at the movement of the ship in co-operation with the coastguard and the armed forces. 

The latest probe comes slightly more than a year after the anchor from another Chinese ship — the container vessel Newnew Polar Bear — damaged a Baltic gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia. Finnish and Estonian authorities have not said whether they believe that was done intentionally or by accident.

Germany’s defence minister Boris Pistorius on Monday said the severing of two fibre optic cables in 24 hours was likely to have been sabotage and was an act of hybrid warfare.

He added: “No one believes that these cables were cut accidentally . . . Therefore, we have to state, without knowing specifically who it came from, that it is a ‘hybrid’ action. And we also have to assume, without knowing it yet, that it is sabotage.”

Yi Peng 3 is owned by Ningbo Yipeng Shipping, a company that owns only one other vessel and is based near the eastern Chinese port city of Ningbo. It was not immediately possible to contact the company. China’s embassy in Stockholm said: “We do not have information on this issue.” Its embassy in Helsinki did not respond to a request for comment.

The US has accused China of offering direct support to Russia’s “war machine” by supplying its military with items that were helping it in its invasion of Ukraine. But there has been little if any public discussion about the activity of Chinese ships in the Baltic Sea.

The US is “incredibly concerned about hybrid warfare”, said state department spokesperson Matthew Miller on Tuesday.

He added that “when it comes to this specific incident, we’ve seen these reports, it’s our understanding that a number of the countries in question have announced investigations into the matter.

“We’ll of course wait for the outcome of those investigations before speaking to them specifically.”

Finnish officials on Monday urged caution and advised against rushing to conclusions. Authorities in Helsinki have said China co-operated with their investigation into the 2023 damage to the gas pipeline.

The governments of Germany, Sweden, Finland and Lithuania expressed their “deep concern” over the severing of the undersea cable and did not rule out sabotage.

Ministers from the countries said in a joint statement: “Situations like these must be assessed with the growing threat posed by Russia in our neighbourhood as a backdrop. This includes an increased number of hybrid activities in Europe.”

Laurynas Kasčiūnas, Lithuania’s defence minister, added: “After the investigation, the EU and member states must make best use of its newest sanctions regime for such sabotage of critical infrastructure.”

Additional reporting by Felicia Schwartz. Cartography by Jana Tauschinski.