Ship Seizure Drills Are Being Conducted In The Baltic Sea Due To Suspicious Activity By The Russian Federation
- 18.09.2026, 7:55
The exercises were organized by the Finnish Border Guard in cooperation with other countries and EU agencies.
Finland conducted exercises during which security forces practiced seizing and searching a vessel in the Baltic Sea. The goal was to test their readiness to respond to potential damage to critical underwater infrastructure and suspicious activity at sea.
This was reported by Reuters.
During the exercise, members of the coast guard, police, and armed forces boarded the vessel from a helicopter. They took control of the crew and searched the premises.
The exercises took place amid concerns in the Baltic region over damage to undersea cables, gas pipelines, and other critical infrastructure. Finland notes that several similar incidents have occurred in the region in recent years.
Coast Guard Commander Ilya Ilyin stated that such exercises reflect a “new normal” for Finland.
“Over the past two to three years, there have been several incidents in the Baltic Sea involving damage to critical undersea infrastructure. Therefore, we must be prepared for the possibility that the next incident could occur,” he said.
According to representatives of Finnish law enforcement agencies, a sudden change in a vessel’s speed or course while passing over underwater cables, in particular, could raise suspicion.
Finland is also working to strengthen the border guard’s capabilities to inspect suspicious vessels, stateless vessels, and unmanned underwater vehicles.
EU Training
At the same time, the practical phase of the MARSEC EU 26 exercise took place in Finland on September 15–17. The exercise focused on responding to an incident involving a suspicious vessel near undersea infrastructure, including boarding the vessel, searching it, and securing control over it.
The exercises were organized by the Finnish Border Guard in collaboration with other EU countries and agencies. The focus was on protecting undersea cables and pipelines and responding to potential hybrid threats.
Finland has previously detained vessels suspected of damaging undersea cables. At the same time, Russia’s involvement in any such incidents has not been proven, and Moscow denies any involvement.
As is well known, in the Baltic Sea, all sorts of provocations occur from time to time, for which the Russian Federation is openly accused. For example, an undersea fiber-optic cable was previously damaged in Latvia’s territorial waters in the Baltic Sea.
Moreover, there was a reported instance when Russia sought to blame Ukraine for provocations.
A representative of one of the Baltic states stated that the Russian military and intelligence services may be planning an attack on infrastructure facilities in Russia, the Baltic states, and Poland using Ukrainian drones.