China joins Baltic Sea cable probe after Sweden's request
On Friday, November 29, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed its willingness to cooperate with relevant countries to resolve the issue of the destruction of two telecommunications cables at the bottom of the Baltic Sea. This announcement responds to a request from the Swedish government regarding the matter.
On Friday, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared its readiness to work with relevant countries to clarify the incidents involving damage to the submarine telecommunications cables in the Baltic Sea, as reported by the Polish Press Agency.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning stated that "China and Sweden are maintaining close communication on this issue." This statement was a response to Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson's announcement on Thursday that Swedish authorities had requested cooperation to investigate the damage to two cables.
The damages occurred on November 17 and 18 in the Swedish economic zone, southeast of the island of Gotland, and south of the island of Öland. Two submarine telecommunications cables were damaged: one connecting Lithuania with Sweden and the other connecting Finland with Germany.
China is ready to cooperate
Swedish media report suspicions that the crew of the Chinese cargo ship Yi Peng 3 may be involved in the case. The ship, having departed from a Russian oil port, is currently in international waters in the Kattegat Strait and is being monitored by the Danish Navy and the Swedish Coast Guard.
Mao Ning did not answer questions regarding the latest findings on the matter. However, China stresses its readiness to work with other countries to establish the facts related to the incident. It remains unclear what the final course of action will be for China and the other involved countries.
