Sweden said Sunday that it seized a vessel suspected of damaging a fiber-optic cable under the Baltic Sea that links the country to Latvia, in what authorities are investigating as an act of "aggravated sabotage.

Sunday's rupture follows a string of incidents that have heightened fears of Russian sabotage and spying in the strategic region. View on euronews

The Arelion submarine cable, which connects the Swedish island of Gotland to Lithuania, and the C-Lion 1 submarine communications cable that runs between Finland's capital Helsinki and the German city of Rostock were also damaged in mid-November near Sweden's territorial waters.

On Sunday morning, an undersea fiber-optic cable belonging to the Latvian State Radio and Television Center (LVRTC) was damaged in the Baltic Sea, the center reported.

There have been a string of incidents in which power cables, telecom links and gas pipelines have been damaged in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

An undersea fibre optic cable between Latvia and Sweden has been damaged, likely due to external influence, prompting a joint investigation by NATO and Baltic nations. Swedish and Latvian authorities are cooperating to assess the situation and determine necessary actions for the repair and protection of critical infrastructure.

Sweden has opened a preliminary investigation into suspected aggravated “sabotage” and ordered the detention of a vessel in the Baltic Sea suspected of damaging an underwater fiber optic cable connecting Latvia and the Swedish island of Gotland earlier that day.

Disruption of the line between Sweden and Latvia follows earlier incidents linked to suspected sabotage by Russia and China.

An undersea fibre optic cable between Latvia and Sweden was damaged on Sunday morning, probably as a result of “external influence”, LSM, the Latvian public broadcaster, reported, citing the cable operator.

Sweden on Sunday said it had seized a ship suspected of having damaged a fibre-optic cable under the Baltic Sea linking the country to Latvia, which sent a warship to investigate the latest apparent act of sabotage.

An underwater fiber-optic cable belonging to the Latvian State Radio and Television Broadcasting Center (LVRTC) was significantly damaged on Jan. 26, reportedly due to external impact, according to LVRTC representative Vineta Sprugaine.