The damage was first detected on January 2, when an optical fibre‑optic cable running from Sventoji in Lithuania to Liepāja in Latvia was found compromised on the seabed. Initial reports suggested a vessel might have been involved, prompting criminal proceedings and a police boarding of a ship in Liepāja port over the weekend.

However, following inspections of the ship itself, including its anchor, technical equipment and logs and interviews with the crew, the Latvian State Police said there is no indication the vessel was responsible for the cable damage. The crew cooperated fully with investigators, according to the police statement.

The exact cause of the damage remains unclear and the investigation is ongoing as authorities explore alternative explanations for the break in the cable.

The incident has occurred against a backdrop of heightened attention on subsea infrastructure in the Baltic region. Multiple outages affecting power, telecom and gas links since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 have kept governments and NATO on alert, with naval and aerial assets deployed to monitor and protect critical systems.

MarineTraffic vessel tracking shows several ships crossed the Lithuania‑Latvia cable route on January 2, but only one was inspected after the damage came to light, and it remains unidentified in official releases.

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