Shipping companies may have to pay a fee for using the Baltic Sea - one of the busiest sea routes in the world. This was stated by Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur, quoted by "Reuters".
The aim is to cover the high costs of protecting underwater cables after a number of similar accidents occurred.
Last week, NATO said it would deploy frigates, patrol aircraft and drones to the Baltic Sea after a series of incidents in which ships damaged power and communication cables with their anchors in acts of suspected sabotage.
In addition to patrols, the defense minister indicated that countries were considering other measures to protect the cables, including installing sensors to detect anchors dragged along the seabed or building enclosures or walls around the cables.
However, this will come at a cost, and whether countries or cable operators pay for it, consumers may ultimately be left to foot the bill through higher taxes. or utility costs.
Pevkur explained that another option is to impose a fee on ships sailing through the Baltic Sea, which borders eight NATO countries and Russia.
"Let's say when you go to the airport, you have the landing fee, you have the airport fee and that's paid in the ticket," he explained.
"So at some point maybe when passing through the Danish Straits there will be costs for companies because it's basically an insurance fee for cable damage".
Pevkur added that there are different options on the table and that countries will have to find a common solution.
According to the International Cable Protection Committee, based in the United Kingdom, about 150 submarine cables are damaged worldwide every year. Telecommunications cables, power lines and gas pipelines in the shallow Baltic Sea are considered particularly vulnerable due to the heavy traffic. Some estimates suggest that as many as 4,000 ships sail through it every day.
On Monday, Swedish authorities detained the Bulgarian ship "Vejen", flying the Maltese flag, in connection with a cable fault connecting Latvia and Sweden - one of four similar incidents in just over a year. Power and telecommunications lines running between Estonia and Finland were also affected.
Pevkur said that while the official investigation is ongoing and the series of incidents point to coordinated actions by ships that are part of the "shadow fleet" of Russia.
"When we see that all these ships are part of Russia's shadowy fleet, even though they are flying under different flags, then of course we have to tie things up", he noted.
Moscow accused Western countries of "without evidence" accusing it of involvement in the incidents.