The Baltic Sea has seen multiple attacks on energy and communications infrastructure since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. These have often been linked to hybrid warfare tactics

G rey-zone operations, hybrid warfare, slicing the salami: there are many terms for Russia’s use of covert attacks that leave opponents unsure how to respond. The latest theatre seems to be the Baltic Sea. Twice in the past two months, commercial ships with Russian links have been accused of damaging cables by dragging their anchors.

Finland says a ship affiliated with Russia's "shadow fleet" is linked to a 60-mile-long anchor drag mark on the seafloor. A power cable in the Baltic Sea was severed last week.

The Finnish authorities said the tanker might be part of Russia’s shadow fleet, which emerged as a way to circumvent Western-imposed price caps on Russian oil transported by sea. The caps were introduced several months after President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia ordered the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Finland has seized an oil tanker suspected of having severed undersea power and internet cables, with Finnish authorities saying the vessel may have been part of Russia's "shadow fleet" of ships aimed at skirting Western sanctions.

Finland’s leaders are calling for more NATO protection against alleged Russian sabotage of critical infrastructure.

Finland's national power grid operator said on Thursday it had asked a Helsinki court to seize the Eagle S oil tanker in a bid to secure the company's claim for damages related to the breakdown of the undersea Estlink 2 electricity interconnector.

The damaged cable is one of several recent incidents in the Baltic Sea under investigation as possible acts of sabotage.