**NATO Sends Ships to Guard Baltic Sea Cables**
A fleet of up to 10 NATO vessels will patrol the Gulf of Finland under the Baltic Sea until April. This decision was made after several cables were cut in suspected sabotage.
The ships, mainly from Finland and Estonia, will guard the infrastructure under the sea. Over the past six months, several telecommunication and energy cables have been damaged. Four telecom cables and one power cable were severed on December 25.
Only two of those cables had been repaired by January 7. Authorities suspect a Russian shadow vessel called Eagle S of being responsible for the sabotage.
**Concerns About Russian Activities Rise**
The incident has raised concerns about Russian illicit activities in the Baltic Sea. Denmark reported two Russian-registered vessels circulating in a small area between Sweden and Denmark for at least a day. The purpose of these vessels remains unclear.
To address these concerns, the U.K-led Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) has set up a tracking system to alert allies if a ship poses a threat to undersea cable infrastructure.
**NATO Increases Military Presence**
NATO is increasing its military presence in the Baltic Sea to bolster situational awareness and deter potential threats. Allies are also exploring measures to protect critical undersea infrastructure, supported by NATO’s Maritime Centre for Security of Critical Undersea Infrastructure.
This move comes as NATO officials have raised alarm over a growing number of Russian sabotage operations in Europe since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
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