On 30 December 2024, NATO Allies met at the alliance’s headquarters to discuss the security of critical infrastructure in the Baltic Sea, following the recent damage to undersea cables connecting Estonia and Finland on 25 December.
The incident, which is under investigation by Finnish authorities, is among a series of events in the region that are being scrutinised as potential acts of sabotage.
The damage to the undersea cables has raised significant concerns about the vulnerability of vital infrastructure in the Baltic, a region of strategic importance to NATO members. In response, NATO has expressed full solidarity with Estonia and Finland and reiterated its commitment to the security of its Allies.
To increase vigilance, improve situational awareness, and deter any further incidents, NATO has announced plans to enhance its military presence in the Baltic Sea.
The alliance is also considering additional measures to address potential threats to critical undersea infrastructure, including ongoing support from the Maritime Centre for Security of Critical Undersea Infrastructure.
NATO launches new centre for security of undersea infrastructure
This centre, established in May 2024, plays a crucial role in monitoring and ensuring the safety of undersea assets vital to the security of NATO member states.
Russia is a land power. They will never lose access to the Baltic it is not the way international relations work. But from a security point of view the Baltic is a nothing burger. Rather like the Black Sea is a nothing burger. Russia can reach its markets through China and the Pacific. NATO might just as well increase forces on Lake Erie for all the good it will do.
This reminds me of that “C’mon do something,……” meme.
The Black Sea is pretty dangerous for Russia and the rest of its ports are iced over for much of the year. It’s limited by its rail and pipeline network as well as the Himalayas on how much it can export over land to China and much of the traffic has to pass through third nations like Kazakhstan. The Baltic is very important to them. Germany Poland the Baltic republics and Nordic countries consider the Baltic a major security concern.
If the Black Sea is a “nothing burger” then why is Russia so obsessed with Crimea and Sevastopol?
It’s not about preventing Russian access to the Baltic Sea. It’s about protecting undersea cables and infrastructure from attack by hostile actors such as Russia and It’s proxies.
Russia does what it wants, and gets away with it. The weal west does NOTHING to stop it never will, we boost this and that but lack a back bone to really do any thing. That is why Russia does these things apart from words NATO is too scared to do much. That is why China hacks the west, along with Russia all our great leaders do is say its naughty.
Spend as much as like on weapons/troop deployments but lack of any balls to use them is why this keeps happening. Put up or shut up,
Just for the Record do Russia have under sea cable’s ? Could we not play them at same game ? And see how they Get on .
Yes, but few.
Look at their Geography. West East along their great land mass a cable can and will be buried under land.
The USN did tap cables in the sea in far east in the 80s.
Look up ok Ivy Bells.
Utterly, and totally pointless exercise. How is having more ships in the Baltic going to prevent further sea bed infrastructure damage.
Unless they get proactive and either shadow Putin’s ghost fleet and board them the second they step out of line or ban them all together from the Baltic.
And after all this the Governnent and MoD are still in denial over the threat to Uk sea bad infrastructure.
Missed JEF opportunity.