Conservatives call for stronger protection of the Baltic Sea: possible sanctions against Russia

2025 m. vasario 3 d. 16:57
Lrytas.lt
To strengthen the protection of critical infrastructure in the Baltic Sea region, the Seimas Conservatives are proposing to adopt a resolution calling on the Lithuanian Government to initiate changes in national and international maritime law and unite the countries of the region in a common response to existing threats.
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The draft document proposes to consider the possibility of equating actions against critical infrastructure of states with terrorism and piracy and mentions possible sanctions against Russia for sabotage actions by the „shadow fleet“ under its control.
According to Radvilė Morkūnaitė-Mikulėnienė, the Conservative Deputy Speaker of the Seimas, who drafted the resolution, the recent increasing frequency of incidents in the Baltic Sea, such as submarine cable breaches and other disruptions to critical infrastructure, pose serious dilemmas for Lithuania and its allies.
„Russia is conducting systematic diversionary operations to disrupt the security of NATO's Northern and Eastern flank. The operations are in a grey area where the Russian shadow navy is testing our and our partners' vigilance. We cannot question these threats and must take active steps to counter them“, said Ms Morkūnaitė-Mikulėnienė.
The registered resolution on „Baltic Sea security and the need to adjust the existing legal regime“ calls for amending the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea to strengthen the protection of submarine cables and create safety zones for them.
The draft document proposes to promote discussions in international organisations on actions to ensure the protection of energy and telecommunications infrastructure throughout the Baltic region.
Proposes to consider sanctions against Russia for the sabotage activities of its de facto controlled „shadow fleet“
The authors of the draft resolution call for the initiation of discussions at the EU level on the possibility of introducing sanctions against the Russian Federation for its de facto „shadow fleet“ sabotage actions against critical infrastructure in the Baltic and Nordic countries.
„Existing international law does not always reflect current geopolitical realities. Most threats have changed, and our adversaries are exploiting existing gaps in international law. If we want to ensure the security of the Baltic region, we need to initiate changes and broaden the existing legislation to deal with hybrid and direct kinetic threats effectively. Lithuania, together with the countries of the region, must make it clear that attacks on infrastructure are unacceptable and must have clear consequences for the aggressors,“ emphasised Morkūnaitė-Mikulėnienė.
The draft resolution proposes to initiate an update of the interpretation of international treaties to determine whether actions against states' critical infrastructure can be equated with terrorism, piracy, or other violations.
The resolution also calls on the Government to mobilise the international community and actively participate in developing new global standards to strengthen maritime infrastructure protection in the Baltic and other regions.
Mindaugas Lingė, Elder of the Homeland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats (TS-LKD) group, also signed the draft resolution.
ELTA recalls that at the end of January, a submarine fibre optic cable of the Latvian State Radio and Television Centre (LVRTC) in the Baltic Sea was damaged between Ventspils and Gotland. The Latvian police have opened criminal proceedings under two articles of the Criminal Code for intentional destruction and damage to property and the public electronic communications network.
A similar incident was recorded last Christmas when submarine electricity and telecommunication cables in the Baltic Sea linking Finland and Estonia stopped working.
According to preliminary data from Finnish officials, sabotage is the main reason for the failure of the EstLink 2 electrical link, as three other cables in the sea, in addition to the electrical link, were cut on 25 December.
In November, a similar incident was also recorded in the Baltic Sea when two telecommunication cables were cut between Sweden, Lithuania, Finland, and Germany. It is believed that the Chinese ship Yi Peng 3, which was sailing in the Baltic Sea at the time, deliberately cut them close to the incident site.

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