Finnish authorities have detained the oil tanker Eagle S, suspecting it of damaging the Estlink-2 undersea power cable that links Finland and Estonia across the Baltic Sea. The incident, which occurred on Christmas Day, is the latest in a series of disruptions to critical infrastructure in the region. Officials have classified the damage as aggravated sabotage, further heightening tensions in an area already strained by geopolitical conflicts.
The Eagle S, flying under the Cook Islands flag, was reportedly transporting unleaded petrol from a Russian port to Port Said, Egypt, when the cable failure was detected. Finnish police and border guards boarded the vessel early Thursday to gather evidence, suspecting that its missing anchor might have caused the damage. Authorities have labeled the tanker as part of Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet”—aging vessels with murky ownership structures used to transport Russian oil while circumventing Western sanctions.
Markku Hassinen, deputy head of the Finnish Border Guard, confirmed suspicions after their patrol vessel visually identified the missing anchor. “There is a clear reason to suspect something unusual happened,” Hassinen stated during a press conference. Investigators believe the anchor dragged across the seabed, severing the cable and causing the power outage.
The damaged Estlink-2 cable, which spans 170 kilometers (106 miles) between Finland and Estonia, is vital for electricity transmission in the region. While the outage has not disrupted electricity supplies, Finnish and Estonian grid operators have emphasized the need for swift repairs. Initial assessments suggest that restoration work could take up to seven months.
This incident follows a pattern of recent attacks on undersea infrastructure in the Baltic Sea. In November, two telecommunications cables connecting Finland and Germany, as well as Sweden and Lithuania, were severed. Earlier, in October 2023, a gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia was damaged, allegedly by the anchor of a Chinese cargo ship. These events have raised concerns among European leaders about hybrid warfare tactics targeting critical infrastructure, with many pointing to Russia as the likely instigator.
The European Union and NATO have condemned the incident, calling it part of an ongoing series of suspected attacks on essential infrastructure. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas described the Eagle S as a vessel that “threatens security and the environment while funding Russia’s war budget.” Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal echoed these concerns, emphasizing the need to bolster monitoring and protection of undersea infrastructure.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte announced plans to enhance the alliance’s presence in the Baltic Sea. Estonia has already deployed a naval operation to safeguard the Estlink-1 power cable, its remaining connection to Finland. Both Finland and Estonia have indicated they may invoke Article 4 of the NATO Treaty, which calls for consultations if a member state feels its security is threatened.
Hybrid warfare—tactics blending conventional and unconventional methods to destabilize countries—has become a growing concern. While direct evidence of state-sponsored sabotage remains elusive, the pattern of infrastructure disruptions has drawn suspicion. Finland and Estonia, both NATO members, have vowed to work closely with allies to prevent further attacks.
As investigations continue, the Baltic Sea has become a flashpoint in the broader geopolitical tensions stemming from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The sabotage of the Estlink-2 cable serves as a stark reminder of the vulnerabilities facing critical infrastructure in an increasingly volatile world.
Finland = Green
Estonia = Blue
Russia = Red
Image is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license and was created using MapChart(https://mapchart.net).
