Norwegian police seized a Norwegian-owned cargo ship at Latvia’s request on Thursday, citing suspicions of its involvement in damaging an undersea fiber optic cable in the Baltic Sea.
The Silver Dania, a Norway-flagged vessel operated by Norwegian group Silver Sea, was stopped off the coast of Tromsø in northern Norway while en route between Saint Petersburg and Murmansk, authorities said Friday.
“The ship is suspected to have been involved in serious damage to a fiber cable in the Baltic Sea between Latvia and Sweden,” Norwegian police said in a statement. Officers boarded the vessel to conduct searches, interrogate crew members, and secure evidence.
The crew, all Russian nationals, and the ship’s owner are cooperating with police, authorities added.
Silver Sea, the company that owns the Silver Dania, denied involvement in the incident.
“The vessel did nothing wrong,” a company representative told AFP.
Concerns over the security of undersea infrastructure have grown among Baltic nations following a series of suspected sabotage incidents. Some observers have pointed to Russia as a possible culprit, though no official accusations have been made.
Previous seizure in Sweden
The seizure follows an earlier case on January 26, when Sweden and Latvia reported damage to a fiber optic cable linking the Swedish island of Gotland to Ventspils, Latvia. Latvia’s state radio and television center (LVRTC) owns the cable.
Swedish authorities responded by seizing a Bulgarian cargo ship, the Malta-flagged Vezhen, on the same day. Swedish prosecutors have since launched an aggravated sabotage investigation into the incident.