The European Union sanctioned two Russian fishing companies, Norebo JSC and Murman Sea Food, in 2025 for involvement in Russia's state-sponsored surveillance and sabotage operations targeting European waters, including espionage missions and attacks on critical undersea infrastructure such as cables. Norway followed with sanctions, citing potential future sabotage risks. Experts highlight that Russian fishing vessels operate in European coastal waters ostensibly for fishing but engage in intelligence gathering, undersea mapping, and sabotage, particularly in the North and Baltic Seas. These activities have increased since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, as part of hybrid grey zone warfare aimed at destabilizing Europe and Norway. NATO and EU officials recognize the threat as highly active and concerning for Western infrastructure security. Issues include the difficulty in tracking vessels due to falsified ownership and re-flagging, requiring stronger EU and national regulatory cooperation to address espionage disguised as fishing.

The European Union sanctioned two Russian fishing companies, Norebo JSC and Murman Sea Food, in 2025 for involvement in Russia's state-sponsored surveillance and sabotage operations targeting European waters, including espionage missions and attacks on critical undersea infrastructure such as cables. Norway followed with sanctions, citing potential future sabotage risks. Experts highlight that Russian fishing vessels operate in European coastal waters ostensibly for fishing but engage in intelligence gathering, undersea mapping, and sabotage, particularly in the North and Baltic Seas. These activities have increased since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, as part of hybrid grey zone warfare aimed at destabilizing Europe and Norway. NATO and EU officials recognize the threat as highly active and concerning for Western infrastructure security. Issues include the difficulty in tracking vessels due to falsified ownership and re-flagging, requiring stronger EU and national regulatory cooperation to address espionage disguised as fishing.