"Had it continued for another 12 minutes, the carnage would have been much worse than the four basic cables that were there," Finnish President Alexander Stubb said.

Russia's military on Tuesday said it would retaliate against Ukraine after Kyiv attacked Russian regions by firing six U.S.-made ATACMS ballistic missiles, six UK-made Storm Shadow cruise missiles and launching one of the biggest drone attacks to date.

The Baltic Sea has seen multiple attacks on energy and communications infrastructure since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. These have often been linked to hybrid warfare tactics

G rey-zone operations, hybrid warfare, slicing the salami: there are many terms for Russia’s use of covert attacks that leave opponents unsure how to respond. The latest theatre seems to be the Baltic Sea. Twice in the past two months, commercial ships with Russian links have been accused of damaging cables by dragging their anchors.

Finnish investigators say the crew of an oil tanker accused of damaging undersea power and communication cables in the Baltic Sea were preparing to cut additional infrastructure before authorities intervened,