Finnish police have arrested two crew members of a cargo ship suspected of severing Finnish telecommunications operator Elisa’s undersea data cable in the Gulf of Finland, YLE reports. In addition, two more crew members were issued with travel bans. Three informed sources told Helsingin Sanomat that there was no indication of Russian involvement in the…
Police in Finland have detained a cargo ship and its crew suspected of breaking two undersea data cables in Estonia’s exclusive economic zone in the Gulf of Finland, ERR reports. Finnish telecommunications operator Elisa detected a fault in its data cable in the early morning hours of 31 December 2025. Estonia’s Ministry of Justice and…
A company connected to a former officer of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) gained access to sensitive information about Lithuania’s Klaipeda State Seaport, according to an international media investigation, BNS reports. Ukraine’s Centre of Journalistic Investigations (TsZhR), in collaboration with Lithuania’s 15min and Latvia’s TV3, found that Andrey Shkrabo, a former FSB officer, headed the…
Russia’s use of “shadow fleet” tankers in the Baltic Sea is increasingly dangerous for the region, according to a report from the Military Intelligence Centre (Luurekeskus) of the Estonian Defence Forces (EDF), ERR reports. Restricting the shadow fleet would reduce Russia’s revenues and military capabilities, and greatly improve security in the Baltic Sea region, the…
Foreign-registered ships made altogether 2,741 visits at Latvian ports in the first half of 2025, which was down 7.1% from 2,949 visits in the same period of 2024, according to data from the Maritime Administration of Latvia (LJA), LETA reports. Foreign ships entered the Freeport of Riga 1,293 times, the Port of Liepaja 616 times,…
Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys called for a “strong and decisive” response to attacks on critical infrastructure in the Baltic Sea, BNS reports. Speaking during a meeting with Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics in Riga, Budrys urged to expand NATO patrols, impose sanctions on Russia’s shadow fleet, and revise navigation rules in the Baltic Sea. Meanwhile,…
The cargo turnover of Estonia’s Port of Tallinn totalled over 13mn tonnes in 2024, which was up 4.4% from 2023, ERR reports. The port operator served over 8mn passengers in 2024, which was 3.6% more than a year earlier. The number of passengers on Estonia’s island ferries rose by 2.1% over a year. Port of…
Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal will host a summit of Baltic rim NATO countries in Helsinki on 14 January 2025 to discuss the security of critical undersea infrastructure and Russia’s shadow fleet, ERR reports. Political leaders from all Baltic rim NATO countries, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, and European Commission…
An anchor belonging to the Russian “shadow fleet” oil tanker, Eagle S, which is suspected of damaging several undersea cables in the Baltic Sea, has been retrieved from the seabed, YLE reports. The anchor was raised by the Swedish Navy’s submarine rescue ship, Belos. Finland’s National Bureau of Investigation (KRP) will now begin analysing the…