HELSINKI: Finnish police on Saturday moved a ship held over suspicions it sabotaged an undersea power cable between Fin­land and Estonia to help with their investigations.

Since Thursday, Finnish authorities have been investigating the Eagle S tanker, which Helsinki suspects of having Russian connections, as part of a probe into the “aggravated sabotage” of the Estlink 2 submarine cable in the Baltic Sea.

That cable’s disconnection on Christmas Day was the latest in a spate of incidents Western officials believe are acts of sabotage linked to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The Cook Islands-flagged ship was then escorted towards the Finnish coast near Porkkala in the south of the Nordic nation.

Finnish police reported the tanker was moved under escort on Saturday to an inner anchorage in Porvoo, a town some 40 kilometres (25 miles) east of Helsinki. “The reason for the transfer is that the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has seized Eagle S.”, the police said in a statement.

Investigations on board were to resume once the vessel had anchored again at its new location. “The new location offers a better option for carrying out investigative measures,” the statement added. Tensions have mounted around the Baltic Sea since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began in Feb 2022.

The Estlink’s disconnection comes just over a month after two telecommunications cables were severed in Swedish territorial waters in the Baltic.

Nato’s secretary general, Mark Rutte, said on Friday the US-led defence alliance would bolster its military presence in the Baltic Sea in response.

Finnish customs suspect the Eagle S to be part of the Russian shadow fleet, referring to ships transporting Russian crude and oil products which are embargoed due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Published in Dawn, December 29th, 2024