U.S. allies warned of “hybrid warfare” Tuesday aftertwo undersea communication cableswere severed in the Baltic Sea, raising suspicions that they may be the latest acts of sabotage targeting the West as it clashes with Russia.
German Defense MinisterBoris Pistoriussaid Tuesday that “no one believes that these cables were cut accidentally” after a rupture in a 730-mile cable linking Germany and Finland was detected Monday.
“We have to state, without knowing specifically who it came from, that it is a hybrid action,” he said. “And we also have to assume, without knowing it yet, that it is sabotage.
Lithuania s navy said Tuesday that it had increased monitoring of its waters after damage to a separate cable connectingthe Baltic nationwith Sweden s Gotland Island was detected on Sunday.
Swedish operator Arelion told NBC News on Monday that the company was in contact with Swedish authorities and the Swedish Armed Forces regarding the incident.
The parties involved in both rupturesall members of NATOstopped short of pointing fingers, but eyesimmediately turned to Russia.
The news came asPresident Vladimir Putin formally lowered the threshold for his country s use of nuclear weapons, days after the United States allowed Ukraine to strike inside Russia using American missiles. And Nordic countries released new guidance advising residents on how to survive a war or similar crisis.
European security is not only under threat from Russia s war of aggression against Ukraine, but also from hybrid warfare by malicious actors, the foreign ministers of Germany and Finland said in a joint statement Monday.
Western officials have accused the Kremlin of intensifying a campaign targeting Ukraine’s allies while assaulting its neighbor in a war that reached 1,000 days on Tuesday.
“Russia is systematically attacking European security architecture,” the foreign ministers of Germany, France, Poland, Italy, Spain and the U.K. said in a joint statement.
“Moscow s escalating hybrid activities against NATO and E.U. countries are also unprecedented in their variety and scale, creating significant security risks.”
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