Along the ocean floor, more than 600 fiber-optic undersea cables, or submarine communications cables, form the backbone of the global internet, transmitting some 95% of all the data shared among continents.
In the Baltic Sea, European authorities have been investigating recent incidents of damaged cables, pointing to evidence that implicates Russia and its alleged "shadow fleet" of ships that are operated by vague owners to evade Western oil sanctions imposed over Russia's war in Ukraine.
Eight nations joined with NATO and the European Commission on Tuesday in deploying a new military campaign that uses aircraft, drones and other surveillance to protect the Baltic's energy and communication cables.
The Baltic Sea NATO Allies Summit, co-hosted by the military alliance and the leaders of Finland and Estonia, announced its "Baltic Sentry" campaign will find new ways to watch the cables and track suspicious vessels.
The summit in Helsinki also included the leaders of Denmark, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Sweden, along with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and E.C. Executive Vice-President Henna Virkkunen.
"We are deeply concerned by actions, be they negligent or malicious, which cause damage to or threaten the functioning of critical undersea infrastructure. We strongly condemn acts of sabotage to critical undersea infrastructure," the leaders said in a joint statement.
"We will actively exchange information, track and assess incidents to analyze trends, and share best practices of our response," they said. "We remain prepared to act individually and collectively to protect our critical undersea infrastructure and increase resilience, including by building on and expanding the existing NATO-E.U. cooperation."
Concerns extend beyond the Baltic region
The summit met to address Baltic incidents of possible Russian sabotage against European infrastructure in response to European Union support for Ukraine – but concluded the threats are "a global problem." An undersea power cable and four telecom cables between Finland and Estonia were severed on Christmas Day, and two data cables in Swedish waters were damaged in November.
"Russia's use of the so-called shadow fleet poses a particular threat to the maritime and environmental security in the Baltic Sea region and globally," they said. "This reprehensible practice also threatens the integrity of undersea infrastructure, increases risks connected to sea-dumped chemical munitions, and significantly supports funding of Russia’s illegal war of aggression against Ukraine."
“Baltic Sentry will deliver focused deterrence throughout the Baltic Sea and counter destabilizing acts like those observed last month,” said U.S. Army General Christopher G. Cavoli, Supreme Allied Commander Europe.
Rutte cited Finland as an example of the firm enforcement that is needed. Finnish authorities seized a Russia-affiliated vessel after concluding its anchor was dragged for about 100 kilometers on the seafloor.
“Ship captains must understand that potential threats to our infrastructure will have consequences, including possible boarding, impounding, and arrest," he said.
Even before Baltic Sentry, NATO forces conducted patrols and exercises for maritime surveillance of the region, where tensions have mounted since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in Feb. 2022.
In Sept. 2022, underwater blasts ruptured the Nord Stream pipelines carrying Russian gas to Europe. And in Oct. 2023, a Chinese cargo ship's anchor damaged an undersea gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia.
