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By John Feng and Isabel van Brugen
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A Russian cargo vessel loitered above undersea communication cables in the Pacific for weeks, a map shows, as concerns grow over potential Russian sabotage.
The Belize-flagged Russian cargo vessel, Vasily Shukshin, left Russia's Vostochnyy port on December 8, stopped for a short period of time in South Korea, before it loitered off Taiwan's coast on December 19, Ray Powell, director of Stanford University-affiliated maritime analyst group SeaLight, said on X (formerly Twitter), on Tuesday morning.
Newsweek reached out to the Kremlin for comment via email on Tuesday.
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Why It Matters
The West has recently raised the alarm over increased Russian military activity near key undersea communication cables. There are growing fears among NATO members that Russian President Vladimir Putin could target underwater cables and critical infrastructure that are vital to global communication systems.
Vessels from China or Russia were previously spotted roaming near cables in the Baltic Sea, off Norway and around Taiwan, before damage was inflicted, raising concerns of sabotage Newsweek previously reported.
What To Know
Powell said the vessel was "aimlessly criss-crossing" the area near Taiwan's Fangshan undersea cable landing station for three and a half weeks "for no apparent reason," but that it was returning to Russia on Tuesday morning.
Local media cited the Taiwan coast guard as saying that the cargo ship didn't damage the nearby underwater cables, but that it would continue to monitor the situation.
The vessel began its return to Russia a day after Powell initially raised the alarm about its activities, he said on X.
What People Are Saying
Ray Powell, director of Stanford University-affiliated maritime analyst group SeaLight, wrote on X: "IT'S LEAVING! But why was it off #Taiwan's coast in the first place? One day after I reported its suspicious activity off the SW coast of Taiwan...the mystery ship VASILIY SHUKSHIN has decided to depart—not south to Vietnam as it previously self-reported, but straight back north to its home port of Vostochnyy, #Russia.
"The Taiwan Coast Guard told local media that the ship did not damage the nearby submarine cables and that it was monitoring its actions. Now, after being called out, the ship has decided to go back to Russia.
"So to review, a #Belize-flagged, #HongKong-registered cargo ship from Russia—which presumably exists to move goods from one port to another—sailed 3,000 km to loiter off SW Taiwan for 3.5 weeks—without seeking to enter any Taiwan port & for no apparent reason—and is now returning to Russia.
Michael Peterson, RMSI director, previously told Newsweek that potential attacks to underwater critical infrastructure around the world present a "legitimate and serious threat."
"Russia for at least a decade has been developing very significant seabed warfare capabilities. Most of those are resident in what's called GUGI, that is Russia's Main Directorate of Deep-Sea Research," he said.
Peterson said that the organization reports to Russia's defense ministry and draws on Russian naval personnel to deploy with its ships and submarines.
"There are all kinds of capabilities that this directorate has that allow it to either conduct espionage, conduct escalation management activities, or to simply fight a war and impose costs on the adversary."
"You can imagine what would happen if transatlantic internet cables were cut by the Russians—that would have enormous financial implications and would also deeply restrict communications between the United States and continental Europe. Those capabilities are pretty significant," Peterson added.
What Happens Next
On Tuesday, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte announced a new mission in the Baltic as part of an effort to safeguard undersea cables and "enhance our vigilance" in the region. The West will continue to adopt security measures as concerns rise over potential Russian activities underwater.
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