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NATO allies foil Russian subsea cable sabotage plot
reuters.com • • world
Key Points:
- NATO allies, including Britain, Norway, and the United States, intercepted Russian submarines near the Svalbard archipelago conducting covert exercises to deploy a secret weapon aimed at disabling critical undersea cables without leaving evidence.
- The operation was conducted by Russia's GUGI undersea warfare directorate using deep-sea submersibles, but the allied forces prevented the exercise from completion, forcing the Russian vessels to leave the area.
- The undersea cables targeted are vital for global internet connectivity and financial transactions, with two key fiber-optic cables linking Svalbard to mainland Norway carrying significant satellite data for NASA’s Near Space Network.
- Western intelligence officials are increasingly concerned that Russia may escalate sabotage operations against NATO infrastructure, potentially testing NATO’s mutual defense pact, with subsea cable destruction seen as a strategic tactic.
- In response, NATO and allied countries have enhanced monitoring and patrols of critical subsea infrastructure, amid rising incidents of suspicious maritime activity near cables and pipelines, underscoring the strategic importance of protecting undersea assets in the Arctic and beyond.
