Amid sky-high tensions between Russia and the collective West, Finnish authorities are currently investigating the cause of a damaged underwater cable in the Baltic Sea, which runs from Finland to Germany. The cable in question, C-Lion1, is a vital communication link, and its disruption has raised concerns.
On Monday, Cinia, the state-owned data service provider, confirmed that a fault had been found in the C-Lion1 cable. As a result, communication connections through this submarine cable have been interrupted. The company assured that the cause of the disruption is being thoroughly investigated.
Samuli Bergström, the communications head at Finland’s National Cyber Security Center, Traficom, also confirmed the break. He noted, “The reasons are under investigation. Disturbances occur from time to time and there can be various reasons. For example, they are susceptible to weather and damage caused by shipping. The essential thing is that the problems are identified and corrective measures are taken.”
Bergström emphasized that while one connection is down, other data routes from Finland remain intact. He added, “It is good to keep in mind that data connections out of Finland go from several different places. Now one of these connections is broken, which may burden others, but the effects are probably not visible to the average citizen.”
The C-Lion1 cable, which spans nearly 1,200 kilometers (750 miles) from Rostock, Germany, to Helsinki, Finland, was commissioned in 2016. It’s the only undersea communications cable linking Finland to central Europe.
This incident follows a string of similar events. In October 2023, Finland’s Balticconnector gas pipeline was damaged in what authorities suspected might have been a deliberate attack. Finland and Beijing have been in talks over the involvement of a Hong Kong-registered cargo vessel in the damage. That same month, Sweden also reported damage to an undersea cable connecting it to Estonia.
This series of incidents comes amid rising tensions in the region, especially after Finland and Sweden joined NATO in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
