Intelligence officials in the U.S. and Europe have suggested that recent incidents damaging critical cables in the Baltic Sea were accidental, according to a Washington Post report. Western geostrategic self-deception has overly emphasized fears of escalation and cornering Russia.

Crew on board an oil tanker accused of sabotaging undersea power and communications cables in the Baltic Sea were poised to cut other cables and pipelines when Finnish authorities boarded the vessel last month,

Estonian naval ships are taking part in stepped-up patrols in the Baltic Sea by NATO countries after undersea power and communications cables have been damaged in recent months.

The Baltic Sea operation in the region bordering Russia comes as European fears of sabotage mount after a string of disruptions to underwater cables.

Chinese researchers apply for patents for ‘submarine cable cutting devices,’ while Russian experts boast on television that cable-cutting will

Henna Virkkunen, Vice President of the European Commission, warned that the EU should prepare for the worst-case scenario due to the Russian shadow fleet's destruction of infrastructure. Virkkunen and Szłapka participated in a debate at the European Parliament in Strasbourg dedicated to "sabotage by the Russian shadow fleet,

US and European intelligence agencies believe that the submarine cable breaks in the Baltic Sea were the result of maritime accidents, not Russian sabotage. This follows from the information currently available,