Finland inspects oil tanker of Russia's 'shadow fleet' after cable damage incident - FT
Kyiv • UNN
The Finnish authorities are investigating the involvement of the Eagle S tanker from the Russian “shadow fleet” in damaging the Estlink 2 submarine electric cable. The vessel was stopped in Finnish waters after the incident last Wednesday.
Finnish authorities are investigating an oil tanker belonging to Russia's "shadow fleet" for having cut an electric cable between Finland and Estonia, the Financial Times reports, UNN writes.
Details
The Eagle S was stopped by Finnish authorities after the Estlink 2 subsea electric cable in the Gulf of Finland was disconnected on Wednesday. A tanker registered in the Cook Islands and transporting oil from Russia to Egypt was seen over the cable at the time of the incident, according to ship tracking data.
According to people familiar with the investigation, the old tanker is part of Russia's "shadow fleet" and is the focus of the Finnish investigation. The Eagle S is also under investigation over whether it cut three communications cables in the Gulf of Finland, the people added.
"The Shadow Fleet is a group of old and often poorly maintained vessels used by Russia to circumvent international sanctions on oil exports.
The Christmas Day incident is likely the latest in a series of pipelines and cables targeted in the Baltic Sea by foreign vessels, raising fears of deliberate attacks on critical infrastructure between NATO countries.
In a statement on X, Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said the authorities were investigating the incident. "The interruption of the power line will not affect the power supply to Finns," he added.
Last year, the Chinese container ship Newnew Polar Bear cut the gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia, but was not stopped by the authorities because it was in international waters, the publication points out.
Last month, the Chinese bulk carrier Yi Peng 3 passed through two data cables between Finland and Germany and Sweden and Lithuania around the time they were severed. It stopped for a month in international waters between Denmark and Sweden.
Last week, Chinese investigators finally boarded the vessel, while representatives from Sweden, Denmark, Germany and Finland were present as observers. But Sweden's foreign minister criticized Beijing for not allowing the chief Swedish investigator to board or inspect the ship, which has now left the region.
The case of the Eagle S is different in that the vessel voluntarily stopped in Finnish waters, according to people familiar with the investigation, leaving no question of jurisdiction. The ownership of the Eagle S is unclear, but it appears to be the only vessel owned by the Dubai-based company. Attempts to reach the owner on Thursday were unsuccessful.
The authorities have not determined the reason for the disconnection of the Estlink 2 cable. Estonia has also said that it will not affect its electricity supply. The cable is used to export electricity from Finland, which recently launched its latest nuclear power plant, to Estonia.
The Finnish authorities are keeping an open mind about the latest incident, not least because there are dozens of poorly maintained shadow fleet vessels sailing in the Baltic Sea.
Environmental activists have repeatedly warned about the dangers in the region and elsewhere associated with the dilapidated ships.
In the Mediterranean, a Russian cargo ship under U.S. sanctions for cooperation with the Russian military sank between Spain and Algeria on Tuesday.
As noted by the Estonian newspaper Postimees, an emergency meeting of the Estonian government was to be held today at 16:00, followed by a press conference at 18:00. The topics of the press conference are the emergency shutdown of Estlink 2 and the protection of underwater infrastructure. The participants of the press conference will be announced during the day, but the Prime Minister of Estonia Kristian Mihal will definitely be there.
