US and European intelligence agencies believe that the damage to the cables at the bottom of the Baltic Sea was caused by accidents, not by Russian sabotage. This was reported by The Washington Post (WP), citing its own sources, UNN reports.
Details
It is noted that during the investigation, experts found no signs that commercial vessels that dragged anchors along the seabed where communication cables were located did so intentionally or on the instructions of Moscow.
Instead, U.S. and European officials have said that the evidence gathered to date, including intercepted communications and other classified intelligence, points to accidents caused by inexperienced crews working aboard poorly maintained vessels
According to the WP, American officials cite "clear explanations" that point to the likelihood that the damage was accidental and that there is no evidence of Russian involvement. Representatives of two European intelligence services share a similar opinion, agreeing with the assessments of their American colleagues.
Meanwhile, Finnish intelligence, while not ruling out possible Russian involvement, generally favors the accident version.
However, Finnish MEP Pekka Tovere, who previously served in the army and worked in his country's intelligence agencies, expressed the opinion that the incidents with the damage to the submarine cables resemble typical hybrid actions by Moscow.
A key feature of any hybrid operation is the ability to deny involvement
According to him, the Russian special services could have carefully covered up the traces, which leads to the conclusion that all the incidents with the cables, which were allegedly accidents, are "complete nonsense.
Marine expert Mike Plunkett, also mentioned in the article, believes it is unlikely that the crews would not have noticed their anchor hitting the seabed.
He characterized the likelihood of three anchor fall incidents in the Baltic region since 2023 as "vanishingly small," though not zero
According to the expert, it is very difficult to prove deliberate sabotage.
Recall
The submarine cable between Finland and Germany was damaged on November 18, 2024, and telecommunications were interrupted, according to the Traficom cybersecurity center.