Russia conducts reconnaissance operations in the waters of NATO member countries
19 April, 2023 A Russian soldier on board the ship "Admiral Vladimirsky", November 2022 Russian military intelligence and naval forces are conducting exploration of the seabed and critical infrastructure of Denmark, Norway, Finland, and Sweden. The Danish media DR reported this.
Russia conducts mapping with a large number of military and civilian ships sailing around Scandinavian waters and detecting objects at the bottom of the sea and discovering the relations between infrastructure. The offshore wind farms, gas pipelines, a network of communication and power transmission cables were in the intelligence's sight. According to Danish intelligence officials, the purpose of the operations is to plan sabotage against Scandinavian countries, including by cutting power cables and communications across the Atlantic and with the rest of Europe.
"In the event of a conflict with the West, they will be prepared and know where to intervene if they want to paralyze Danish society," said Anders Henriksen, Head of Counterintelligence of the Danish Security and Intelligence Service (DSIS).
Russian Navy Vessel Discovered With Intercepted Radio Communications
During the investigation, a team of journalists intercepted radio communications of the "Admiral Vladimirsky" Russian Navy ship. Officially, "Admiral Vladimirsky" is involved in marine research, but according to the media, it is also used for reconnaissance missions. Last November, the ship bypassed the Kattegat Strait near the Danish peninsula of Jutland, with tracking systems (transponders) turned off.
Nevertheless, the ship continuously sent out radio messages to a naval base in Russia with information about its location. Based on the intercepted radio messages, DR journalists managed to determine the approximate location of the Russian ship, after which the crew went to sea and found the ship in the waters between the Danish peninsulas Sjaelands Odde and Grenaa. As the speedboat approached the ship, several men with their faces covered emerged at the deck, including a uniformed man in body armor armed with an assault rifle.
The intercepted radio communications suggested that "Admiral Vladimirsky" spent a month exploring the seabed in the waters of the Baltic Sea, Greater Belt, Kattegat, and the North Sea. Independent marine analyst Sutton (H.I.
Sutton) estimates that in particular, it likely mapped the exact location of the seabed power cables going to offshore wind farms. This version is also confirmed by Danish navy Captain and military analyst Jens Wenzel Kristoffersen of the University of Copenhagen, who also analyzed the ship's route. He insists that the ship systematically passed and made stops near offshore wind farms near a number of countries.
"The ship was on a mission to map what was new there. To check if there has been a change since they were last there and figure out an action plan if they have to strike offshore wind farms," he assessed. The infrastructure of wind farms in Danish waters is critical.
According to statistical publications, in 2020 alone, the share of renewable electricity received from wind farms in Denmark amounted to 48%. The destruction of this component of the country's energy infrastructure will lead to collapse.
Danish wind farms in the North Sea. Photo from open sources
Dozens of ships with suspicious sailing pattern
"Admiral Vladimirsky" is far from the only Russian vessel that performed suspicious tasks in the northern waters.
Last year, a team of DR, NRK, SVT, and Yle journalists mapped a large amount of ship traffic data and discovered 50 Russian ships that had been on suspicious routes in the past ten years.
"They can carry out specific missions, such as placing sea mines and mapping pipelines, communication cables, and other relevant sabotage facilities," said Ase Gilje Ostensen, a hybrid threat expert at the Norwegian Defence Academy.