Finnish police have detained the crew of a ship suspected of cutting a subsea Internet cable in the Baltic Sea.

The cable between Helsinki and Estonia's Tallinn in the Gulf of Finland was damaged, but owner Finnish telecoms operator Elisa said that services were not impacted due to redundant routes.

On December 31, Finnish authorities seized the St Vincent and Grenadines-flagged cargo ship the Fitburg. The vessel, stopped in Finnish waters, had been traveling from St Petersburg in Russia to Haifa, Israel.

Finnish police said that the tanker’s crew consists of Russian, Georgian, Kazakh, and Azerbaijani sailors

“At this stage, the police are investigating the incident ‍as aggravated criminal damage, attempted aggravated criminal damage, and aggravated interference with telecommunications," the police said in a statement.

Finnish President Alexander Stubb said: "Finland is prepared for security challenges of various kinds, and we respond to them as necessary."

The European Commission's EVP for tech sovereignty, security, and democracy, Henna Virkkunen, added: "The European Commission is closely monitoring the most recent cable damage incident at the Baltic Sea. Together with the Member States and NATO, we are prepared to counter hybrid threats.

"In line with the Action Plan on Cable Security, we will fund a hub to monitor submarine cable threats and enable quick responses at the Baltic Sea area. More funding for cable repair capability will be available in early 2026. We also continue to work on cable security toolbox with Member States, and engage with industry on smart cables."

Earlier this year, NATO launched the Baltic Sentry program to protect against attacks on subsea energy and data cables in the Baltic Sea.

In November 2024, a Chinese-registered bulk carrier traveling from Russia was accused of cutting two cables in the Baltic Sea. At the time, Russia was suspected of being behind the cuts, but officials later claimed it was an accident.

A similar incident occurred in January 2025 when a Latvia-Sweden subsea cable was damaged in the Baltic Sea.