Finland detains vessel after cable damaged between Tallinn and Helsinki

On the morning of December 31, 2025, faults were detected in two undersea cables located in Estonia's exclusive economic zone near the Gulf of Finland. Finnish authorities detained a cargo vessel suspected to be involved in damaging these cables between Tallinn and Helsinki. The Estonian and Finnish governments coordinated closely in the investigation. Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas noted that initial evidence does not link the vessel to Russia's known shadow fleet network. The incident raised concerns about critical infrastructure security in the Baltic Sea region, prompting high-level cooperation between Estonia and Finland. The ship was seized by Finnish police as the investigation continues.