Allies disrupt a Russian submarine cable rehearsal near Svalbard
According to a Reuters report carried by Euronews, Norway, Britain and the United States tracked and drove away Russian submarines testing a device near Svalbard that could disable undersea cables without leaving a trace. The account, based on two Western officials, said no cable was damaged. Russia's defence ministry did not respond, while the Kremlin has denied sabotage allegations.
Geopolitics··Midday
A rehearsal near the cables
According to a Reuters report published by Euronews, submarines linked to Russia's deep-sea research directorate spent weeks near Svalbard rehearsing the use of a device capable of disabling undersea cables without leaving a trace. The report rests on two Western officials. They described the activity as a test rather than an actual attack and said no cable was damaged. Russia's defence ministry did not answer Reuters' request for comment, while the Kremlin has previously denied conducting sabotage in NATO countries.[1], [2]
A three-country tracking operation
The report said a joint Norwegian, British and American operation tracked the Russian submarines and forced them to leave the area. Norwegian Defence Minister Tore Sandvik said the operation sent a message that Russia could not work unobserved and that an attempt against critical infrastructure would be detected. The allied intervention occurred during the preparation, unlike an investigation mounted after damage. The public account does not disclose the technical details of the device or identify the submarines involved.[1], [2]
The vulnerability of the Svalbard link
Two fibre-optic cables, each 1,400 km long, connect Svalbard with mainland Norway. Euronews places the submarine activity near this limited physical link, so the absence of damage does not remove the infrastructure-security dimension. The report relies on two unnamed Western officials and the Norwegian minister's assessment. No independently verifiable, dated report of the same episode was found from BBC News or the Associated Press, so the details here remain bounded to a single publication chain.[1], [2]
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