Finland recovered the anchor of Eagle S, the tanker that’s been detained after damaging undersea cables in the Baltic Sea in December.
The anchor was raised to the surface on January 6 and taken for forensic analysis, the National Bureau of Investigation said in a statement the following day.
The events unfolded after December 25, when Eagle S sailed over a subsea power link and four data cables in the Gulf of Finland, damaging critical infrastructure assets. Finnish authorities have found drag marks likely left by its anchor over a distance of “dozens of kilometers” on the bottom of the sea, and identified the ship as the culprit.
The vessel, sailing under the Cook Islands flag, has been identified as a member of the so-called shadow fleet transporting Russian petroleum products, and is now detained at a port in southern Finland.
Finland is allowed to keep the ship detained, a court ruled on January 3, while it probes aggravated criminal mischief and aggravated interference of communications.
Among other investigations, a Port State Control inspection carried out by the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom is coming to an end, according to a statement on January 7. Traficom expects to announce the results of the safety probe as well as any decisions regarding the seaworthiness of the tanker on January 8.
Traficom’s inspection included the vessel’s technical condition, environmental aspects, documentation as well as the conditions of the crew on board.
On January 6, Finnish telecommunications company Elisa Oyj said it had repaired both of its submarine data cables that were damaged in December. Cinia Oy also said its cable, a high-speed Finland to Germany connection for data centers, was fixed and that it had filed an application to the Helsinki District Court demanding the vessel’s seizure in order to compensate for the damages.
Separately, the Joint Expeditionary Force, a United Kingdom-led defense group that also includes Finland and Sweden, has stepped up activity to identify suspicious vessel movements faster, the Swedish government said in a statement.
