Lithuania's army, border guards train to protect underwater infrastructure in Baltic Sea

VILNIUS - Lithuania's army and the State Border Guard Service held a joint exercise in the Baltic Sea this week to step up national preparedness for the protection of underwater infrastructure, the army said on Friday.

The exercise was important for strengthening the protection of critical infrastructure and the operational response to possible breaches, including procedures for apprehending suspected violators, it said.

"Today's security environment requires constant vigilance and preparedness. Underwater critical infrastructure is vital for the security of Lithuania and the Baltic region, so this exercise allows us to improve our cooperation with other institutions and ensure that we are able to respond swiftly and effectively to any threats," Navy Commander Fleet Admiral Giedrius Premeneckas said.

The exercise simulated various situations, including one in which a civilian vessel approached Lithuania's territorial waters in violation of the international rules on safe navigation and carried out suspicious activities in the vicinity of the NordBalt electric cable, violating the critical infrastructure protection zone.

Under another simulated scenario, the crew of an offending vessel sailing in Lithuania's exclusive economic zone refuses to comply and resists with the use of guns.

According to the army, the exercise is part of the ongoing preparations for the Baltic states' disconnection from the BRELL power grid system, which will involve disconnection from the Russian power system and synchronization with the continental European grid. It's a strategic goal for Lithuania and the entire Baltic region, and special attention is being paid to the protection of the electricity infrastructure, including submarine cables, from potential threats, as at least 11 cables on the Baltic seabed have been damaged since October 2023.

Their operators say damage to submarine cables is relatively common. However, the frequency and concentration of such incidents in the Baltic Sea has reinforced suspicions that the damage may have been deliberate.

Officials in different countries suspect that some of the violations in the Baltic Sea are part of Moscow's so -called "shadow fleet" used to evade the existing international war-related sanctions on Russian oil exports.

In response to the incidents, NATO launched a new Baltic Sentry surveillance mission in the Baltic Sea in January to prevent attempts to attack underwater infrastructure in the region.