Finland Hosts NATO Baltic Summit on Critical Infrastructure Security
A meeting of NATO Allies around the Baltic Sea began in the Finnish capital Helsinki on 14 January. The key topic of the event was the security of underwater infrastructure. This was reported by Yle.
The summit is accompanied by enhanced security measures, including police on duty even on the roof of the presidential palace. The event is attended by the leaders of NATO countries with access to the Baltic Sea. A press conference with Finnish President Alexander Stubb, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal is scheduled for the afternoon.
Before the meeting, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said that Stockholm would not make unfounded accusations, but that the damage to the cables in the Baltic Sea did not appear to be an accident. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda called the incidents most likely deliberate actions by a hostile country, stressing the need for a swift NATO response.
Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs praised Finland's prompt action after the serious incident on 25 December. He called for stronger sanctions against Russia's ‘shadow fleet’ and for countermeasures to prevent similar incidents from happening again.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also supported the idea of coordinating legal actions in the event of a threat from the shadow fleet and suggested involving private owners of underwater infrastructure in the surveillance system.
Sweden has detected signs of damage to the Nordbalt cable in the Baltic Sea, which probably occurred in November.