A Russian investigation has alleged that Russia is using ‘ghost’ spy ships masquerading as fishing boats off the coast of the United Kingdom to map wind farms and communications cables for sabotage attacks should it go to war with the West.
The fleet of Russian ships, disguised as fishing trawlers and research vessels, was said to be sailing across the North Sea to collect data on the whereabouts of wind farms, gas pipelines, power and internet cables.
An investigation by public broadcasters in Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland alleged that ships are conducting underwater surveillance to determine how infrastructure is connected with the aim of planning sabotage attacks against the West.
Intelligence sources warn that Russia aims to plan sabotage attacks should it go to war with the West, with the aim of crippling energy supplies in Europe.
“In the event of a conflict with the West, they are ready and know where to intervene if they want to cripple Danish society,” said Anders Henriksen, head of counterintelligence from the Danish police intelligence service. Denmark DR.
A Russian investigation has alleged that Russia is using ‘ghost’ spy ships masquerading as fishing boats off the coast of the United Kingdom to map wind farms and communications cables for sabotage attacks should it go to war with the West. Last November, Admiral Vladimirsky (pictured) sailed around the Kattegat Sea between Denmark and Sweden without sharing his position for a month.
Video shows a masked man holding a Russian military semi-automatic rifle stepping forward on the upper deck as a DR journalist approaches Admiral Vladimirsky in a rubber boat. A number of other men also stepped forward
Russia aims to plan sabotage attacks should it go to war with the West, with the aim of crippling Europe’s energy supplies. Pictured: an armed Russian man aboard the Admiral Vladimirsky
“This is a strategic capability for Russia, which is very important and is controlled directly from Moscow,” added Nils Andreas Stensons, head of the Norwegian Intelligence Service.
Intercepted radio communications from the Russian Navy which reveal that Russia is using “ghost ships” in the North Sea. These ships have turned off their transmitters and are therefore untraceable in international waters.
Broadcasters DR in Denmark, NRK in Norway, SVT in Sweden and Yle in Finland all pointed out how the Russian Navy ship Admiral Vladimirsky is being used to gather intelligence — rather than conducting naval research as Russia says it is.
Last November, Admiral Vladimirsky sailed around the Kattegat Sea between Denmark and Sweden without sharing his location for a month — but still sent radio messages to a naval base in Russia about his location.
The ship slowed as it approached areas with wind farms and loitering in the area.
But announcer DR manages to intercept the radio signals and locate the ship.
Video shows a masked man holding a Russian military semi-automatic rifle stepping forward on the upper deck as a DR journalist approaches Admiral Vladimirsky in a rubber boat. A number of other men also stepped forward.
The Russian ship sailed around the Baltic, North and Kattegat seas for a month, its route passing through current and future offshore wind farms.
Intelligence sources say the aim of this mission is to prepare for sabotage attacks that will cut off electricity and data cables across the Atlantic and the rest of Europe.
They say Russian ships likely mapped power cables on the seafloor connecting offshore wind farms.
“This is what research ships do – as part of the preparation for a major war with NATO,” says an intelligence source.
Broadcasters DR in Denmark, NRK in Norway, SVT in Sweden and Yle in Finland all pointed out how the Russian Navy’s ship Admiral Vladimirsky (pictured) is being used to gather intelligence — rather than conducting naval research as Russia says.
“There will be assemblies of cable where one bomb can destroy an entire wind farm,” said Hay Sutton, an independent marine analyst.
“The ship was on a mission to map what’s new out there — have there been changes since the last time it was there — and figure out how to do it better if they were to hit offshore wind farms,” a naval captain and military analyst said Jens Wenzel Kristoffersen of the University of Copenhagen. .
The same ship was reportedly seen off the Scottish coast last year – 30 nautical miles east of Lossiemouth, home to the Royal Air Force’s fleet of maritime patrol aircraft.
In February, the Dutch military intelligence agency MIVD said that in recent months Russia had tried to obtain information to sabotage critical infrastructure in the Dutch part of the North Sea.
MIVD chief Gen. Jan Swellens said at the time that a Russian ship had been discovered at an offshore wind farm in the North Sea while trying to map out energy infrastructure.
He added that Dutch warships and coast guards escorted the ship out of the North Sea before any sabotage efforts succeeded.
In recent months we have seen Russian actors try to reveal how the energy system in the North Sea works. ‘It’s the first time we’ve seen this,’ said Swellens.
Russia is mapping out how our North Sea wind parks might work. They are very interested in how to sabotage the energy infrastructure.
The Dutch intelligence agencies MIVD and AIVD said, in a joint report published on Monday, that critical maritime infrastructure such as internet cables, gas pipelines and windmill farms have become the target of Russian sabotage activities.
“Russia is secretly drawing this infrastructure and carrying out activities that indicate preparations for disruption and sabotage,” the agencies said.
They added that covert threats by Russia to the Netherlands’ water and energy supplies could be imagined.
