Sweden has detained a vessel suspected of damaging a Latvian underwater cable.

On Sunday, January 26, the Swedish prosecutor's office issued a warrant to detain a vessel suspected of damaging a Latvian underwater communication cable in the Baltic Sea. The Latvian State Radio and Television Centre (LVRTC) reported the damage to the cable connecting Latvia to the Swedish island of Gotland on Sunday morning, as informed by the Swedish newspaper Expressen.

It is noted that the Swedish Coast Guard surrounded the vessel Vezhen, which is anchored near the port of Karlskrona. Preliminary reports indicate that the Maltese-registered ship departed from the Russian port of Ust-Luga on January 24 and made a trip between Gotland and Latvia on January 26.

The Swedish Security Service stated that there is Swedish government personnel on board the vessel.

“We are currently conducting a series of specific investigative measures, but I cannot disclose details as the preliminary investigation is ongoing. Several agencies are involved in the investigation, including the Operational Department of the National Police, the Coast Guard, and the Armed Forces of Sweden,” said senior prosecutor Mats Ljungqvist.

Ljungqvist declined to answer reporters' questions about whether any crew members of the Vezhen had been arrested.

The publication notes that the prime ministers of Sweden and Latvia discussed the incident regarding the cable damage, and NATO has launched a large-scale operation in the Baltic Sea involving ships and aircraft.

The Swedish Security Service is conducting a criminal investigation into the act of sabotage. The Latvian police have also initiated a criminal case concerning the incident under two articles of the Criminal Code—intentional damage to property with serious consequences and intentional damage to the public electronic communications network.

Recall that on the morning of January 26, the Latvian State Radio and Television Centre (LVRTC) reported damage to an underwater fiber optic cable in the Baltic Sea. The centre's monitoring system detected disruptions in data transmission between the Latvian Ventspils and the Swedish Gotland. The centre suggested that external influence might have caused the damage to the cable.

Earlier, on January 14, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stated that the Alliance would launch the “Baltic Sentry” mission, which would involve patrolling the most critical areas of the Baltic Sea. The mission was initiated due to frequent disruptions of underwater cables, which are suspected to be caused by vessels from Russia's shadow fleet.