Chinese ship suspected of damaging cables leaves Baltic Sea

The Chinese ship Yi Peng 3, whose crew is suspected of deliberately severing two communication cables in the Baltic Sea, has weighed anchor and set sail for Egypt.

This was reported by the Swedish public broadcaster SVT, citing the coast guard.

The ship had been in the Kattegat Strait between Sweden and Denmark for more than a month, until it weighed anchor on its own initiative on December 21. The crew told the coast guard that they were heading to Port Said in Egypt. The Yi Peng 3 is expected to leave Swedish waters late tonight.

The coast guard said it was monitoring the vessel's movements and was in contact with other authorities. Danish Navy ships were also nearby.

Two days earlier, Swedish police were able to board the Yi Peng 3 along with several other authorities. However, the state prosecutor leading the investigation was denied permission to do so.

What preceded?

On November 17-18, two communications cables broke on the bottom of the Baltic Sea. One was between Finland and Germany, and the other was between between Sweden and Lithuania.

The crew of the Chinese bulk carrier Yi Peng 3 was suspected of deliberate damage. The vessel left the Russian port of Ust-Luga on November 15, loaded with Russian fertilizers.

It is believed that the crew was anchored in the water, although they should have noticed the slowdown.

Eventually, Danish Navy ships intercepted the Yi Peng 3, forcing it to anchor in the Kattegat Strait, which connects the Baltic and North Seas. However, under international maritime law, NATO ships had no right to force the vessel to enter one of their ports. Therefore, the bulk carrier remained in the strait.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said that Beijing would cooperate with all countries to ensure the safety of international submarine cables and other infrastructure.

A similar incident occurred in October 2023. At that time, a Chinese-registered vessel called the Newnew Polar Bear damaged the Balticconnector gas pipeline and a telecommunications cable. WSJ sources told us that Russian sailors were aboard the Chinese vessel at the time of the incident.