Finland conducts maritime drills to counter undersea sabotage

Finnish authorities conducted live maritime drills in the Baltic Sea to practice boarding and searching vessels suspected of undersea sabotage. The exercise involved masked officers from the coast guard, police, and armed forces fast-roping from helicopters to secure crews and inspect ships.

Coast Guard Commander Ilja Iljin stated the drill reflects “the new normal” following several incidents involving damage to critical underwater infrastructure, such as power cables, telecom lines, and gas pipelines, in the Baltic Sea region since 2022. Officials noted that abrupt changes in a ship’s speed or course while passing over undersea lines can serve as indicators of potential involvement in cable damage.

While many past incidents were attributed to vessels dragging anchors, authorities are also preparing for more deliberate sabotage involving divers, mini-submarines, or explosive-carrying underwater robots. The Finnish government is currently seeking expanded powers for the Border Guard to inspect suspicious vessels and intervene against unmanned underwater vehicles.