He warns that Russia is constantly strengthening its presence in the region and that such meetings have become almost daily.
The Baltic Sea is faced with growing security challenges: hybrid drone attacks, possible sabotage of underwater infrastructure and the presence of the “shadow fleet” – a network of old tankers carrying Russian oil and posing an additional risk. Last month, Britain’s defense secretary warned that a Russian reconnaissance ship had entered British waters and was jamming military pilots with lasers, calling it part of a “new era of threats”.
As tensions rose, Sweden hosted a major NATO anti-submarine warfare exercise, Playbook Merlin 25, in which Sweden, Germany, France, the US and several other countries participated. The complex underwater terrain around Sweden, full of hidden bays and depths, makes it even more difficult to locate submarines.
Petkovic states that Russia is rapidly modernizing its fleet and produces a new Kilo-class submarine every year. He expects that after a possible ceasefire in Ukraine, Moscow will focus its capabilities even more on the Baltic, which is why the Swedish Navy must continue to expand its capabilities.
Concern is also caused by the “shadow fleet”, for which Petković does not rule out the possibility that it could be used to launch drones. The underwater infrastructure in the Baltic is particularly vulnerable due to specific conditions, and the most exposed are Sweden, Finland, Estonia, Lithuania and Norway, which depend on safe maritime communication routes.
Nevertheless, the increased NATO presence is producing results. Petkovic says that since the beginning of the Baltic Sentry operation in January, not a single incident involving submarine cables has been recorded, which shows that the alliance is responding effectively to threats and that merchant ships’ awareness of the risks has increased significantly.
(Vijesti.ba)
