EU preparing sanctions on Russia’s ‘shadow fleet’ after cable damage

The EU Foreign Policy chief has said the bloc is preparing sanctions on what it calls Russia’s ‘shadow fleet’ after an undersea power cable connecting Finland and Estonia was damaged in the Baltic Sea.

Kaja Kallas posted the joint statement from the EU Commission and the High Representative leading the investigation on X, saying the “suspected vessel is part of Russia’s shadow fleet, which threatens security and the environment, while funding Russia’s war budget.”

Kallas also said the EU was strengthening efforts to protect undersea cables, adding that there was no risk to regional electricity supplies.

That comes after Finnish authorities detained a Russian ship as part of an investigation into damage to the Estlink-2 power cable.

It carries electricity from Finland to Estonia across the Baltic Sea and went down on Wednesday.

Finnish police and border guards boarded the Eagle S vessel on Thursday and took over the command bridge, Helsinki Police Chief Jari Liukku said at a press conference.

The vessel was being held in Finnish territorial waters, police said.

The Eagle S is flagged in the Cook Islands but was described by Finnish customs officials and the European Union’s executive commission as part of Russia’s shadow fleet of fuel tankers.

Those are aging vessels with obscure ownership, acquired to skirt Western sanctions and operating without Western-regulated insurance.

Russia’s use of the vessels has raised environmental concerns about accidents given their age and uncertain insurance coverage.

The Eagle S’ anchor is suspected of causing damage to the cable, Yle television reported, citing police statements.

The Estonian government met in emergency session over the incident.

The shadow tankers “are helping Russia to earn funds that will aid Russian hybrid attacks,” Prime Minister Kristen Michal said at a news conference.

“We need to improve the monitoring and protection of critical infrastructure both on land and on sea.”

He said repairs to the cable could take as long as seven months.

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“Repeated damage to Baltic Sea infrastructure signals a systemic threat, not mere accidents,” Estonia’s President Alar Karis said on X.

“Estonia will take action to counter this threat, together with Finland and other NATO allies.”

On high alert

Countries in the region have been on alert following a string of incidents involving undersea cables and gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea since 2022.

Two data cables — one running between Finland and Germany and the other between Lithuania and Sweden — were severed in November.

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Germany’s defence minister said officials had to assume the incident was “sabotage,” but he didn’t provide evidence or say who might have been responsible.

And the Nord Stream pipelines that once brought natural gas from Russia to Germany were damaged by underwater explosions in September 2022.

Authorities have said the cause was sabotage and launched criminal investigations.