Two submarine internet cables in the Baltic Sea were damaged within just a few hours of each other on Sunday and Monday. Swedish and other European security authorities are investigating suspected sabotage. A Chinese freighter and several other ships that were in the vicinity of the cables at the time, including a Russian one, are being monitored. Europe's press sees a clear suspect – and the need for action.
Putin making his negotiating position clear
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Poland’s Gazeta Wyborcza sees Russia taking a first step towards talks on ending the war:
“Russia is preparing further acts of sabotage in Europe - it's no coincidence that cables running along the bottom of the Baltic Sea have been damaged now of all times - and is counting the days until Donald Trump takes office. Putin expects talks to end the conflict. The terms he will offer according to media reports will be hard to accept. Russia wants to keep what it has seized and receive a guarantee that Ukraine will not join NATO. Biden would respond to such a dictum from Putin with two words. But what will Trump do?”
A menacing alliance of dictators
The war has moved a little closer to Lithuania, columnist Rimvydas Valatka comments in LRT:
“The brave Ukrainian people will not survive the next thousand days of this war – too alone, too unequal in strength to withstand the alliance of dictators from around the world. And when that happens, fascist Russia will bring its war to Lithuania and all of Europe. The threat is already palpable: the almost simultaneous damage to the cables between Finland and Germany and between Lithuania and Sweden is no mere coincidence.”
Moscow does not want a Nato inland sea
Esotonia’s Postimees warns:
“The recent sabotage of submarine cables in the Baltic Sea shows that the hybrid war in our immediate neighbourhood is intensifying. Estonia and its allies must remain calm and vigilant. ... One of the biggest geopolitical shifts during this period has been the accession of Finland and Sweden to NATO. As a result, the Baltic Sea has essentially become an inland sea of Nato. Naturally, Moscow isn't happy about this, and since a conventional war in the region is out of the question right now, hybrid warfare techniques are being used. ... For Estonia and its allies, there can be only one response to this hybrid war: more collaboration and the actual use of the Baltic as a Nato inland sea.”
Popular targets in hybrid wars
Columnist Pierre Haski puts this possible act of sabotage in context on France Inter:
“Russia is now the only Baltic Sea state that is not a member of NATO. And critical infrastructure such as undersea cables have become popular targets in 'hybrid wars'. ... If it is confirmed that these two cables were sabotaged by a hostile power, it would be yet another escalation in a fractured world - and no doubt not the last one.”
Do more to protect critical infrastructure
Germany’s Deutschlandfunk sets out a plan for action:
“More must be done to ensure the security of cables and pipelines. Attackers must be tracked down more effectively and made to fear accusations. Whenever Russian and Chinese ships sail in the North and Baltic Seas, they must be monitored by drones or ships that track their location at all times. Cables and pipelines could also be equipped with more sensors to send alerts about impacts and approaching objects more quickly. And because it will still be impossible to rule out the possibility of sabotage entirely, more ships will be needed to quickly repair any damage in an emergency. We must be willing to make these investments to protect critical infrastructure.”
Reprinted from eurotopics. You can find the original here.
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