Norway and the UK Foil Russian Undersea Cable Mapping Operation in the North Atlantic

Norway and the United Kingdom carried out an operation to detect and drive away Russian submarines in northern waters.

According to the VG outlet, Russian forces were attempting to map underwater cables and pipelines in the Atlantic and nearby areas.

The naval forces and aviation of both countries jointly carried out the operation. Defense Minister Tore Sandvik confirmed that Norway deployed P-8 Poseidon patrol aircraft and a frigate for the mission.

Sandvik said that in recent weeks, Russia had been highly active in Norwegian and British waters. Russian submarines were trying to expand their capabilities for espionage and sabotage against critical infrastructure at great depths. However, active countermeasures enabled tracking these movements in time and driving the submarines out of the area.

The defense minister emphasized that Oslo and London closely coordinate the protection of the seabed.

According to him, the deployment of strong naval forces demonstrated to the Kremlin that any covert operations in Norwegian waters are impossible.

In London, these events were described as several weeks of monitoring three Russian submarines. UK Defense Secretary John Healey said the allies did more than just observe them – they also successfully restricted their activity and ultimately disrupted their mission.

He added that the increase in Russian activity came at a time when global attention had shifted to developments in the Middle East.
So far, no damage to pipelines or cables has been found, but experts are still carefully inspecting the infrastructure.

The British side has not disclosed the exact location of the incident or the specific infrastructure of interest to the adversary. However, the Minister confirmed the involvement of two Russian deep-sea specialized submersibles operating under a classified program run by the Main Directorate for Deep-Sea Research (GUGI) of the Russian Ministry of Defense.

The operation itself took place in international waters, outside the United Kingdom’s territorial zone.

Recently, the United Kingdom conducted a month-long operation to detect and track Russian submarines in the North Atlantic.

The military recorded the activity of a Project 941 “Akula” submarine and two specialized vessels near critical subsea infrastructure.

In addition to the attack submarine, British forces identified ships operated by Russia’s Main Directorate for Deep-Sea Research. The Minister also mentioned the Russian intelligence vessel Yantar, which was seen in the region in November last year.