Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson stated on Sunday that his country was neither at war nor at peace, citing hybrid strikes, suspected sabotage in the Baltic Sea, and a proxy war fought on its grounds.
Several underwater telecom and power cables have been destroyed in the Baltic Sea in recent months, according to experts and lawmakers, as part of Russia’s hybrid war efforts.
Sweden is not at war, but there is no peace either. “True peace means freedom and no serious conflicts between countries,” he told the annual Folk och Forsvar defence gathering in Salen, central Sweden.
The security situation and the fact that unusual things continue to occur in the Baltic Sea lead us to conclude that hostile intentions cannot be ruled out,” he said.
On December 25, the Estlink 2 electrical cable and four communication cables linking Finland and Estonia were damaged, barely weeks after two telecom cables in Swedish Baltic Sea waters were destroyed on November 17-18.
Tensions have risen throughout the Baltic Sea after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
A series of underwater blasts ruptured the Nord Stream pipelines that transport Russian gas to Europe in September 2022, with the cause unknown.
In October 2023, an undersea gas pipeline connecting Finland and Estonia was shut down because it was damaged by the anchor of a Chinese cargo ship.
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