Observing from the deck of a Finnish patrol ship, I witnessed armed individuals descending from a helicopter and launching an assault on the vessel.
The masked guards swiftly advanced to the ship’s control center, vocally asserting their authority. Fortunately, this was merely a practice drill conducted by the Finnish Border Guard, responsible for safeguarding an 830-mile border along NATO’s eastern perimeter against Russia. Additionally, they actively engage with Putin’s covert fleet in the Gulf of Finland and have conducted operations on vessels suspected of tampering with crucial undersea cables.
Clad in camouflage, personnel demonstrated the procedure for taking over a suspicious vessel to Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper during her visit to Finland and Norway. The proximity to Russia felt pronounced as we boarded the Turva, an offshore patrol vessel in Helsinki, overlooking the Gulf of Finland, extending to St Petersburg in the eastern Baltic Sea.
Given Russia’s close proximity, Finland grapples with Putin’s subversion tactics and hybrid warfare. During Ms. Cooper’s visit, the emphasis was on the threat posed by the Russian shadow fleet to Britain.
In an interview, Ms. Cooper escalated her calls for action to crackdown on the network of aged oil tankers operating under questionable flags. These vessels not only fund Putin’s unlawful activities in Ukraine by circumventing Western sanctions but are also accused of disrupting undersea cables vital for telecommunications and energy transmission.
There is speculation that the UK is exploring the legalities of boarding such vessels, following its recent support to US special forces in a daring operation targeting a tanker linked to Russia. The Foreign Secretary’s visit coincides with escalating tensions over the Arctic region.
The changing climate leading to warmer seas has triggered a geopolitical contest as new maritime routes emerge and resources become accessible due to melting ice. Concerns were raised by Donald Trump’s statements regarding annexing Greenland, a semi-autonomous territory under Denmark, elevating the issue to global prominence.
Britain aims to demonstrate its capability to contribute significantly to shaping security in the High North alongside NATO partners. However, any disruptive actions by the US President could jeopardize these efforts.