Nato opts for a mission in the Baltic Sea with drones to counter Russian shadow fleet

In a firm response to the increasing hybrid threats in the Baltic Sea, eight countries of the region claimed to be “determined to deter, detect, and counter any attempts of sabotage.”

“Any attack against our infrastructure will be met with a robust and determined response,” leaders of Finland, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, and Sweden jointly stated after a meeting in Helsinki.

“We stand ready to attribute hostile actions committed by malign actors, as appropriate”, the statement reads. The reference is to the number of cables and pipelines that have been endangered and are now the subject of complex investigations. The last one occurred on December 25th.

The Finnish authorities that day intervened to detain a suspect vessel – identified precisely as an element of Moscow’s shadow fleet – and forced it into port to be inspected. The ship is suspected to be the origin of an unplanned failure in the Estlink 2 submarine power cable connecting Estonia and Finland’s electricity system. According to a first assessment, the damage has been caused using the anchor dragging method, which authorities take into account also for previous sabotages, such as those involving two undersea fiber-optic communications cables linking Lithuania and Sweden on one side and Finland and Germany on the other side.

At the meeting in Helsinki, Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte announced the launch of a new military activity by NATO to strengthen the protection of critical infrastructure. “Baltic Sentry” will enhance NATO’s military presence in the Baltic Sea and improve the Allies’ ability to respond to destabilizing acts.

The launch of “Baltic Sentry” will involve a range of assets, including frigates and maritime patrol aircraft. NATO also aims to deploy new technologies, including a small fleet of naval drones, “to provide enhanced surveillance and deterrence,” Rutte stated in a press conference. NATO will work within the Critical Undersea Infrastructure Network, which includes industry, to explore further ways to protect infrastructure and improve the resilience of underwater assets,” as stated in a press release.

Baltic countries also decided to set up a group of legal experts to discuss freedom of navigation in international waters and appropriate action within this framework.

“We now have the capacity to act. We will increase NATO’s presence in the Baltic Sea and continue to improve the use of modern technology in sussing out activity in the Baltic Sea and on infrastructure,” President of Finland Alexander Stubb said in an end-of-work press conference.

According to NATO figures, over 95% of internet traffic is secured via undersea cables. A total of 1.3 million kilometers of cables guarantees an estimated $10 trillion worth of financial transactions every day. “Safeguarding our infrastructure is of the utmost importance. Not only is this crucial for energy supply, whether it comes from power cables or pipelines,” Rutte told journalists.

“Ship captains must understand that potential threats to our infrastructure will have consequences, including possible boarding, impounding, and arrest,” he said, commending the Finnish reaction to the attack of last December.