NATO will begin a large-scale operation to protect critical infrastructure in the Baltic Sea at the end of this week. The alliance is sending up to ten ships for the mission, Yle reports. According to the news agency,

The decision follows a spate of suspected sabotage incidents on underwater cables.

According to a report by Finnish public broadcaster Yle, NATO plans to strengthen its military presence in the Baltic Sea by deploying ships to protect underwater infrastructure. The operation is set to commence at the end of the week.

While the risk of damage, deliberate or accidental, to energy and communications infrastructure under the Baltic Sea cannot be entirely eliminated, naval cooperation among the democratic states that surround the sea can help to enhance deterrence against attacks,

General Mark Rutte says the military alliance will step up patrols in the Baltic Sea area as Finnish investigators work to establish whether a ship linked to Russia sabotaged undersea cables there this week.

In addition, a U.K.-led 10-member consortium of northern European nations called the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) has reactivated an AI-based system to track suspicious ships in these waters. The actions are a response to the suspected deliberate severing on Christmas Day of the Estlink 2 undersea power cable and four undersea communications cables between Finland and Estonia,

NATO plans to bolster its military presence in the Baltic Sea by deploying ships to protect underwater infrastructure in the region, according to a report by Finnish public broadcaster Yle. The operation is set to begin at the end of the week.