Already in October last year, a Finnish gas pipeline and two data cables connecting Sweden, Estonia, and Finland were damaged. Then, as now, a ship is suspected to have caused the damage.
In mid-November, two underwater cables in the Baltic Sea were damaged, one between Finland and Germany, the other between Sweden and Lithuania.
The suspicions are directed against Russia, which is believed to have carried out the sabotage via the Chinese ship Yi Peng 3.
The police authorities in Finland, Sweden, and Lithuania establish a joint investigation group, JIT, to investigate the cause of the damage to the cables.
In early December, two new cable breaks on internet connections between Sweden and Finland were discovered. Initially, sabotage was suspected, but this was later denied by the Finnish police.
On Christmas Day, the tanker Eagle S passed the cable Estlink 2 at 11:26 am, according to the maritime surveillance website Marine Traffic. Shortly afterwards, the Finnish network operator Fingrid announced that it had lost contact with the power cable Estlink 2.
The damage was localized to Finnish waters and the suspicions are directed against Eagle S.
Three communication cables have also been destroyed, according to Estonian authorities.
On Thursday, Eagle S was boarded by Finnish police and military. The tanker was escorted to the port of Porkala in Finland. The police and border guard conducted technical investigations and the crew was interrogated.
The suspected crime is being investigated as gross sabotage.
The Finnish customs suspect that the ship also violated the sanctions against Russia.
On Friday, Estonia's defense forces announced that an operation had been launched in the Baltic Sea to protect the underwater cable Estlink 1.
NATO announced that the military presence in the Baltic Sea would be increased.
Finland's President Alexander Stubb said that the three cable failures in Finland in the past year cannot just be a coincidence.
The Swedish Coast Guard increased surveillance of shipping traffic. At the same time, Svenska kraftnät announced that it would tighten security around power cables between Sweden and Finland.
Eagle S was moved on Saturday from Porkala to a protected anchorage near Sköldvik's harbor further into the Gulf of Finland. The investigation work was paused during the move.
