Norway Detains Another Vessel with Russian Crew Over Suspected Baltic Sea Cable Damage

Another vessel with a Russian crew was detained in Norway on suspicion of involvement in damaging an undersea communication cable between Latvia and Sweden. This was reported by the local police.

According to law enforcement officials, the detention took place on the basis of a legal request from the Latvian authorities and a court order.

The detained vessel, Silver Dania, is flying the Norwegian flag and is owned by a Norwegian company. The crew of the vessel consists exclusively of Russian citizens. ‘The Silver Dania regularly sails between the Russian ports of St Petersburg and Murmansk.

The vessel, which was in the Norwegian economic zone off the coast of Tromsø, was detained by the coastguard ship KV Bison on the evening of Thursday, 30 January, at around 21:00 local time.

The vessel is currently in the port of Tromso, where police are conducting searches, questioning crew members and other investigative activities. The Norwegian Police Security Service (PST) has also joined the case.

Earlier, the investigation into the damage to the submarine fibre optic cable focused on the bulk carrier Vezhen, which was passing near the site of the incident on Sunday, 26 January, at 00:45 GMT. The Swedish prosecutor's office even issued a warrant for his detention, and on 27 January, Swedish authorities boarded the vessel to conduct investigations.