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Chinese Ship’s Crew Piloted By A Russian Cut International Cables
The crew of Yi Peng 3, which is captained by a Chinese national and includes a Russian sailor
From the article.
That’s not what the previous article said. Crap now i gotta go look it up.
Ah. https://www.dagens.com/world/danish-navy-intercepts-chinese-ship-linked-to-sabotage
The ship’s captain is reportedly a russian citizen
So- ? Either it wasn’t true, or it was and the Chinese ship would rather lie about it.
Maybe both are true and he has both russian and chinese citizenship
It’s not uncommon for ships to have a captain that commands and stays with the ship and a pilot that is familiar with and helps navigate regional waters, who takes over navigation and issues orders in the areas that they are qualified to operate.
I’m not saying that’s what happened here - I don’t know and haven’t seen any information that would support that idea - but it could explain the discrepancy.
If China has decided to not oblige by international Maritime law in its illegal imperialistic expansion around the Spratly islands and its fishing fleets, why do they deserve any protections under international Maritime law?
Europe and the rest of the world needs to stop treating Russia and China like equals who respect the law. These are deliberate actions in hybrid war meant to exploit Western tolerance.
It’s a Chinese vessel, but the crew (at least the captain) was Russian IIRC.
This should be considered an act of war
That expression lost all meaning, it’s better to call is casus belli which implies that it can be pressed or not depending on the will of the aggressed
It might well be. Thing is, no-one wants war. If the west wanted war, they wouldn’t need a broken cable for it.
www.wsj.com Exclusive | Chinese Ship’s Crew Suspected of Deliberately Dragging Anchor for 100 Miles to Cut Baltic Cables Bojan Pancevski 7 - 9 minutes
A Chinese commercial vessel that has been surrounded by European warships in international waters for a week is central to an investigation of suspected sabotage that threatens to test the limits of maritime law—and heighten tensions between Beijing and European capitals.
Investigators suspect that the crew of the Yi Peng 3 bulk carrier—225 meters long, 32 meters wide and loaded with Russian fertilizer—deliberately severed two critical data cables last week as its anchor was dragged along the Baltic seabed for over 100 miles.
Their probe now centers on whether the captain of the Chinese-owned ship, which departed the Russian Baltic port of Ust-Luga on Nov. 15, was induced by Russian intelligence to carry out the sabotage. It would be the latest in a series of attacks on Europe’s critical infrastructure that law-enforcement and intelligence officials say have been orchestrated by Russia.
“It’s extremely unlikely that the captain would not have noticed that his ship dropped and dragged its anchor, losing speed for hours and cutting cables on the way,” said a senior European investigator involved in the case.
The ship’s Chinese owner, Ningbo Yipeng Shipping, is cooperating with the investigation and has allowed the vessel to be stopped in international waters, according to people familiar with the probe. The company declined to comment.
The damage to undersea cables occurred in Swedish waters on Nov. 17-18, prompting that country’s authorities to open a sabotage investigation. Russia has denied wrongdoing.
Investigators have established that the ship dropped anchor but remained under way in Swedish waters on Nov. 17 at around 9 p.m. local time. The dragging anchor cut the first cable between Sweden and Lithuania shortly afterward, according to two people familiar with the investigation.
During that time, the ship’s transponder, which charts its movements on the so-called Automatic Identification System, shut down in what is known as a “dark incident” in marine traffic jargon. The ship then continued even as the dragging anchor greatly reduced its speed, according to satellite and other data reviewed by investigators.
Investigators say that at around 3 a.m. the following day, having traveled about 111 miles, the Yi Peng 3 cut the second cable between Germany and Finland. Shortly afterward, the ship started zigzagging, raised anchor and continued. Danish Navy ships then set out to pursue and intercept the Yi Peng 3, ultimately forcing it to anchor in the Kattegat Strait, which connects the Baltic and the North seas.
A review of the vessel’s anchor and hull showed damage consistent with having dragged its anchor and severed cables, people familiar with the investigation said.
“Given the mild weather conditions and manageable wave heights, the likelihood of accidental anchor dragging appears minimal,” according to an analysis prepared for The Wall Street Journal by Kpler, an analytics company that provides real-time data on international shipping.
While such incidents have been handled confidentially in the past, the damage to the internet cables last week quickly prompted public interventions from top European leaders.
The crew of Yi Peng 3, which is captained by a Chinese national and includes a Russian sailor, hasn’t so far been questioned, according to people familiar with the probe, but a member of a Danish pilot ship briefly boarded the ship before it was anchored in the Kattegat Strait.
Several Western law-enforcement and intelligence officials said they didn’t think the Chinese government was involved in the incident but that they suspected Russian intelligence agencies were behind the sabotage.
“These are absurd, unsubstantiated accusations,” the Kremlin press office told the Journal. The same Western officials who point fingers at Russia were silent when Ukraine blew up the Nord Stream gas pipelines, the press office said in reference to the 2022 sabotage of the conduit for Russian gas to Europe.
“I would like to reiterate China’s consistent support working with all countries to maintain the security of international submarine cables and other infrastructure in accordance with international law,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told reporters on Wednesday.
The Chinese bulk carrier is now guarded by a small flotilla of North Atlantic Treaty Organization ships belonging to Denmark, Germany and Sweden.
Previously neutral, Sweden is one of the newest members of NATO, having joined the military alliance in the wake of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Under international maritime law, NATO ships can’t force the Yi Peng 3 to sail into one of their ports. Swedish and German authorities are negotiating with the ship’s owner to obtain access to the vessel and question its crew.
German police also dispatched the Bamberg, a patrol vessel, to investigate one of the incidents with underwater drones. Swedish and Danish ships have also examined the sites on the seabed.
European authorities must tread carefully because of their commitment to the freedom of navigation and upholding international law that underpins global trade, according to several European politicians, as well as security and law-enforcement officials familiar with the probe.
Since the launch of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Kremlin has been accused by Western officials of waging a shadow war on NATO territory in Europe to destabilize the West, including orchestrating attacks on undersea pipelines and data cables in the Baltic and the Arctic.
In October last year, a Chinese-registered vessel called Newnew Polar Bear cut the Balticconnector gas pipeline and a telecommunication cable connecting Finland and Estonia with its anchor, according to people familiar with the investigation into the case. Some officials briefed on the investigation said Russian sailors were aboard the Chinese ship at the time of that incident.
Newnew Polar Bear was allowed to proceed toward Arctic Russia because authorities in Sweden, Denmark and Norway didn’t want to halt the ship without sound legal backing, according to officials.
But in the case of Yi Peng 3, the Danish Navy decided to intervene quickly to stop the ship after the second cable was damaged, people familiar with the investigation said.
Yi Peng 3 had operated solely in Chinese waters from December 2019 through early March 2024, when it suddenly changed its pattern of operation, said Benjamin L. Schmitt, senior fellow at the University of Pennsylvania’s Kleinman Center for Energy Policy.
The Chinese ship then started carrying Russian coal and other cargo, making calls in Russian ports such as Nakhodka on the Sea of Japan, several trips to the Port of Murmansk in the Barents Sea and a trip to the Baltic Sea. At present, the ship is loaded with Russian fertilizers, according to Kpler data.
“While this alone is not enough to provide evidence of Russian involvement, the fundamental change in the ship’s operating region to Russian ports after years operating solely in Chinese waters should be a key area of investigation for European authorities,” Schmitt said.
Write to Bojan Pancevski at bojan.pancevski@wsj.com
Archive link: https://archive.is/U6Ig5
A Chinese commercial vessel that has been surrounded by European warships in international waters for a week is central to an investigation of suspected sabotage that threatens to test the limits of maritime law—and heighten tensions between Beijing and European capitals. Investigators suspect that the crew of the Yi Peng 3 bulk carrier—225 meters long, 32 meters wide and loaded with Russian fertilizer—deliberately severed two critical data cables last week as its anchor was dragged along the Baltic seabed for over 100 miles. Their probe now centers on whether the captain of the Chinese-owned ship, which departed the Russian Baltic port of Ust-Luga on Nov. 15, was induced by Russian intelligence to carry out the sabotage. It would be the latest in a series of attacks on Europe’s critical infrastructure that law-enforcement and intelligence officials say have been orchestrated by Russia. “It’s extremely unlikely that the captain would not have noticed that his ship dropped and dragged its anchor, losing speed for hours and cutting cables on the way,” said a senior European investigator involved in the case. The ship’s Chinese owner, Ningbo Yipeng Shipping, is cooperating with the investigation and has allowed the vessel to be stopped in international waters, according to people familiar with the probe. The company declined to comment. The damage to undersea cables occurred in Swedish waters on Nov. 17-18, prompting that country’s authorities to open a sabotage investigation. Russia has denied wrongdoing. Investigators have established that the ship dropped anchor but remained under way in Swedish waters on Nov. 17 at around 9 p.m. local time. The dragging anchor cut the first cable between Sweden and Lithuania shortly afterward, according to two people familiar with the investigation. During that time, the ship’s transponder, which charts its movements on the so-called Automatic Identification System, shut down in what is known as a “dark incident” in marine traffic jargon. The ship then continued even as the dragging anchor greatly reduced its speed, according to satellite and other data reviewed by investigators.
THE YI PENG 3, LEFT, IS MONITORED BY A DANISH NAVAL PATROL VESSEL. Investigators say that at around 3 a.m. the following day, having traveled about 111 miles, the Yi Peng 3 cut the second cable between Germany and Finland. Shortly afterward, the ship started zigzagging, raised anchor and continued. Danish Navy ships then set out to pursue and intercept the Yi Peng 3, ultimately forcing it to anchor in the Kattegat Strait, which connects the Baltic and the North seas. A review of the vessel’s anchor and hull showed damage consistent with having dragged its anchor and severed cables, people familiar with the investigation said. “Given the mild weather conditions and manageable wave heights, the likelihood of accidental anchor dragging appears minimal,” according to an analysis prepared for The Wall Street Journal by Kpler, an analytics company that provides real-time data on international shipping. While such incidents have been handled confidentially in the past, the damage to the internet cables last week quickly prompted public interventions from top European leaders. The crew of Yi Peng 3, which is captained by a Chinese national and includes a Russian sailor, hasn’t so far been questioned, according to people familiar with the probe, but a member of a Danish pilot ship briefly boarded the ship before it was anchored in the Kattegat Strait. Several Western law-enforcement and intelligence officials said they didn’t think the Chinese government was involved in the incident but that they suspected Russian intelligence agencies were behind the sabotage. “These are absurd, unsubstantiated accusations,” the Kremlin press office told the Journal. The same Western officials who point fingers at Russia were silent when Ukraine blew up the Nord Stream gas pipelines, the press office said in reference to the 2022 sabotage of the conduit for Russian gas to Europe.
UNDERWATER FIBER-OPTIC CABLES, CARRYING TRANSACTIONS WORTH TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS A DAY, ARE CENTRAL TO THE U.S.-CHINA TECH WAR. WSJ EXPLAINS THE BATTLE FOR INFLUENCE BENEATH THE WAVES. ILLUSTRATION: KSENIA SHAIKHUTDINOVA “I would like to reiterate China’s consistent support working with all countries to maintain the security of international submarine cables and other infrastructure in accordance with international law,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told reporters on Wednesday. The Chinese bulk carrier is now guarded by a small flotilla of North Atlantic Treaty Organization ships belonging to Denmark, Germany and Sweden. Previously neutral, Sweden is one of the newest members of NATO, having joined the military alliance in the wake of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Under international maritime law, NATO ships can’t force the Yi Peng 3 to sail into one of their ports. Swedish and German authorities are negotiating with the ship’s owner to obtain access to the vessel and question its crew. German police also dispatched the Bamberg, a patrol vessel, to investigate one of the incidents with underwater drones. Swedish and Danish ships have also examined the sites on the seabed. European authorities must tread carefully because of their commitment to the freedom of navigation and upholding international law that underpins global trade, according to several European politicians, as well as security and law-enforcement officials familiar with the probe. Since the launch of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Kremlin has been accused by Western officials of waging a shadow war on NATO territory in Europe to destabilize the West, including orchestrating attacks on undersea pipelines and data cables in the Baltic and the Arctic.
THE CHINESE SHIP MADE CALLS AT RUSSIAN PORTS SUCH AS NAKHODKA. In October last year, a Chinese-registered vessel called Newnew Polar Bear cut the Balticconnector gas pipeline and a telecommunication cable connecting Finland and Estonia with its anchor, according to people familiar with the investigation into the case. Some officials briefed on the investigation said Russian sailors were aboard the Chinese ship at the time of that incident. Newnew Polar Bear was allowed to proceed toward Arctic Russia because authorities in Sweden, Denmark and Norway didn’t want to halt the ship without sound legal backing, according to officials. But in the case of Yi Peng 3, the Danish Navy decided to intervene quickly to stop the ship after the second cable was damaged, people familiar with the investigation said. Yi Peng 3 had operated solely in Chinese waters from December 2019 through early March 2024, when it suddenly changed its pattern of operation, said Benjamin L. Schmitt, senior fellow at the University of Pennsylvania’s Kleinman Center for Energy Policy. The Chinese ship then started carrying Russian coal and other cargo, making calls in Russian ports such as Nakhodka on the Sea of Japan, several trips to the Port of Murmansk in the Barents Sea and a trip to the Baltic Sea. At present, the ship is loaded with Russian fertilizers, according to Kpler data. “While this alone is not enough to provide evidence of Russian involvement, the fundamental change in the ship’s operating region to Russian ports after years operating solely in Chinese waters should be a key area of investigation for European authorities,” Schmitt said.
“Oupsie”
“During that time, the ship’s transponder, which charts its movements on the so-called Automatic Identification System, shut down in what is known as a “dark incident” in marine traffic jargon. The ship then continued even as the dragging anchor greatly reduced its speed, according to satellite and other data reviewed by investigators.”
Double oops!
So blatantly obvious. There should be serious consequences. Banning Russian-crewed ships seems like a reasonable start
Russia is blatantly waging war against Western Europe, and no one is doing anything about it because they aren’t using strictly military equipment, and acknowledging that the war has already started would have implications the EU doesn’t want to admit, yet.
Yes, Russia and China is fighting a war against the West, and we are standing with our pants down. No need to start shooting, but their actions should be met with equal force (eg. make it a similar hurdle for Chinese business to operate in EU, than it is for us to do business in China). And for fuck’s sake, ban all Russian propaganda and punish domestic supporters, as it’s affecting our politics.
Don’t just blame it on Russia. It’s the entire east. This is all very purposeful. See: Asian Century.
Calm down Ted
How many casualties so far ?
Impossible to tell. But in my small German home town alone, several people died from delayed care in a hospital, after its IT system was brought down by Russian hackers.
“These are absurd, unsubstantiated accusations,” the Kremlin press office told the Journal. The same Western officials who point fingers at Russia were silent when Ukraine blew up the Nord Stream gas pipelines, the press office said in reference to the 2022 sabotage of the conduit for Russian gas to Europe.
LOL
Whataboutism is strong with this one.
Regardless if it’s China or Russia or an accident, the whole crew should be held until the damages have been paid. :)
The skipper was russian
They were probably prompted to do this and claim it was an “accident”, but in reality it was basically a test run on how resilient or not those cables actually are.
You can bet that Russia has at least one ship on standby in the Baltic sea with a kind of “plow” that will be the first in the waters to wreck havoc on all kinds of links down there.
Archived
This post uses a gift link which is likely to have a view count limit, and no archived copy is presently available.
Next time, just archive the gift link?
Some earlier commentary on the voyage from the What’s Going on With Shipping channel.
Upvote for posting “what’s going on with shipping”. That’s a great channel.
joke’s on them, I use starl… oh
wait
Next time we see that ship there is going to be a big oops as well.
The ship is seen. It’s anchored just outside of the border of Denmark with 3 or 4 different navy vessels around it.
I think Denmark should grow some balls and restrict access to Kattegat for Russian and Russia-bound vessels.
