Russian “ghost ships” spy in the North Sea, investigation
19.04.2023 - 14:30
Photo: crew member of the russian “scientific and research” vessel “Admiral Vladimirskyi”, DR.
Russian vessels disguised as fishing trawlers and research vessels regularly ply in the North Sea. They collect data on objects of underwater critical infrastructure of European countries.
Russia has a fleet in the North Sea disguised as research and fishing vessels. These vessels collect data on the location of wind farms and submarine cables, according to a joint investigation by Danish, Norwegian, Swedish and Finnish publications.
Yes, russian vessels have equipment for underwater surveillance, and their crews map key locations for potential sabotage.
British officials are already aware of the “spy ships” plying in British waters.
According to one of the media sources (a Danish counterintelligence officer), russia is preparing sabotage plans in case of a large-scale conflict with the West. The head of Norwegian intelligence told broadcasters that the “spy ship” program is extremely important for russia and is controlled directly from moscow.
Investigators have analyzed intercepted russian messages that indicate “ghost ships” plying the waters of the North Sea but turning off AIS to avoid revealing their location.
In particular, the report refers to the russian ship “Admiral Vladimirskyi”. Officially, it is an expeditionary oceanographic vessel. But the investigation claims that it is actually a reconnaissance ship.
An anonymous expert from the Royal Navy of Great Britain noted that the ship slowed down as it approached areas where wind farms are located. The vessel’s AIS has been disabled for several months.
When one of the DR journalists approached the vessel in a small boat, he saw a man wearing a mask and a bulletproof vest with a weapon in his hands.
Last year, investigators mapped a large amount of data on the movement of vessels and found 50 Russian ones that had sailed suspiciously over the past ten years.
“They can perform specific missions where, for example, they can place sea mines and map pipelines, communication cables and other similar objects,” said the Norwegian Defense Academy’s hybrid threat expert.
According to another source, an associate professor at the academy, the 50 vessels on the media map are only part of the russian spy system. And in general, it can be about hundreds of vessels that russian federation can potentially use for sabotage on objects related to the Internet, electricity, gas and other infrastructure in the West.
