On Sunday and during the night towards Monday, it was discovered that two data cables in the Baltic Sea had been cut or damaged. The submarine cable C-Lion 1, which runs between Helsinki in Finland and Rostock in Germany, had been cut. Additionally, a cable between Sweden and Lithuania has been damaged.
Against the background of the serious security situation, this is naturally nothing that we take lightly, says Bohlin.
The breaks in the cables have occurred close to each other in time, within 19-20 hours, according to the minister.
The Coast Guard and the Defense Forces have been able to establish, with the help of their sensor chains, that there are ship movements above these locations, which correspond in time and space with the occurrence of the breaks, says Bohlin.
Criminal Investigation
This is the background to why a preliminary investigation into suspected sabotage has now been initiated. Bohlin does not want to comment on which ships are involved, but refers to the police.
Affected Swedish authorities have since the cables were damaged investigated the events and suspect a crime.
"The criminal classification is currently sabotage. The preliminary investigation is ongoing and is in an early stage. There is no further information to provide about the investigation at present", says prosecutor Henrik Söderman in a press release.
No Disruptions
The police state that they are cooperating with other affected authorities, including the Security Service. They have also requested assistance from the Coast Guard and the Defense Forces.
The crime scene investigation will be conducted on the seabed in the very near future, says Bohlin.
On Tuesday afternoon, ships from the navy were sent to the Baltic Sea after a request for support from the police and prosecutors.
We will provide support with underwater expertise. We will look at the area around the damaged cables to see what has happened, says the navy's press officer Jimmie Adamsson to Aftonbladet.
Carl-Oskar Bohlin notes that the cable breaks have not resulted in any disruption of data traffic, but he believes that it is serious that critical infrastructure on the seabed is being destroyed through what may be sabotage.
