Silicon Bites #76 - Finland Impounds Ship Suspected of Sabotaging Undersea Cables & Infrastructure

Edition No76 | 07-01-2025 - An anchor belonging to the oil tanker Eagle S, suspected of being used to damage undersea cables in the Gulf of Finland, has been located and retrieved from the seabed. This follows the seizure by police in Finland of the Russian-linked dark fleet tanker Eagle S. This is the first time a ship suspected of sabotaging undersea infrastructure has been taken into custody by authorities, according to Estonia Prime Minister Kristen Michal. Estonia Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said the damage to undersea infrastructure was not a coincidence. “They have become systematic, and we must consider them an attack on our infrastructure,” he said. The Finnish customs service believes the Eagle S is part of a shadow fleet of ageing tankers being used to evade sanctions on the sale of Russian oil. ---------- SILICON CURTAIN FILM FUNDRAISER A project to make a documentary film in Ukraine, to raise awareness of Ukraine's struggle and in supporting a team running aid convoys to Ukraine's frontline towns. https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extras ---------- Trucks under Christmas Tree https://donorbox.org/trucks-under-christmas-tree/fundraiser/silicon-curtain The Goal of the Campaign for Silicon Curtain: € 10,000 to purchase 1 truck to save Ukrainian lives. ---------- Here are some interesting points about the seizure of the vessel, made by expert Robin Häggblom on Twitter last week. 1) Finnish Defence Forces involvement seems to have been limited. It was the Finnish Border Guard's flagship that shadowed the tanker and caught it in the act, According to Robin this was largely handled by the ministry of the Interior and Law Enforcement, rather than obvious military forces units. 2) The Police told a reporter they don't plan on contacting the Russian authorities. This was a strong and correct gesture of contempt for Russia and its actions. But Robin notes that it may also mark an end to the process of soft appeasement of Russia known as Finlandization, where the USSR and Russia was given special consideration compared to other states. 3) If the Russians have been foolish enough to use shadow fleet vessels as SIGINT platforms, for monitoring and intelligence operations, then we may expect must closer tracking of their grey fleet by NATO powers, and potentially more interventions. The shadow fleet-concept, notes Robin, rests on the right of innocent passage, while intelligence gathering specifically is mentioned as *not* being part of that under UNCLOS Article 19, 2. If there is reason to suspect innocent passage isn't adhered to, it can up new legal actions, which the Western allies have been loath to adopt until now. 4) The operation is typical for how Finland handles hybrid operations. Everything is done according to the book and within a clear legal framework. But the signalling around this operation appears to be unusually strong, which may be intended as a clear message to Russia. More of a show of force than was necessary may indicate that Finland and other countries’ patience with Russia’s illegal, aggressive and risky actions does have limits. More on this story in forthcoming episodes with experts Elizabeth Braw and Jerry Hendrix. ---------- NEWS SOURCES: https://yle.fi/a/74-20135216 https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/finland-court-rejects-owners-request-release-oil-tanker-2025-01-03/ https://www.lloydslist.com/LL1151950/Finland-police-seize-Russian-linked-dark-fleet-tanker-Eagle-S-in-cable-cutting-investigation ---------- SUPPORT THE CHANNEL: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain https://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtain ----------