Russia is testing Europe’s limits in the Baltic Sea and creating an imminent threat for the continent, the head of the German navy has warned.
Increasingly hostile actions by the Russian military, including low-flying combat ships and the sabotage of naval bases, are the prelude to an escalation, vice admiral Jan Christian Kaack told The Times.
“We [and Russian warships] see each other at sea every day. Things can happen there, by chance or by design: carelessness, a misfired shot,” he said.
“So the expectation is high that a possible escalation will occur in the maritime domain. We have to prepare the men and women for that.”
Nato has been increasingly concerned about the Kremlin’s intentions after several drone incursions into member territory over recent months. Several experts have warned that Russian president Vladimir Putin could be pushing the limits of the alliance’s Article 5 mutual defence clause.
The borders of the Baltic states have been at the centre of such discussions, including the city of Narva in Estonia or along the Polish-Lithuanian border that separates Leningrad from Belarus, according to the publication.
But recently, Nato sources said planners have been exploring the effects of Russian military action on the Baltic Sea. The area has been frequently referred to as “Lake Nato” after Sweden and Finland joined. But Mr Kaack warned that Putin could still cause damage by cutting off sea routes.
“This is not a Nato lake and it never will be for as long as the Russians have Kaliningrad and St Petersburg,” he explained. “The Baltic Sea is very narrow, which means we face a rapid threat.”
The admiral also warned about the use of Russia’s shadow fleet in carrying out such incursions.
“I think one can see that the Russian state is desperately trying to get the things it can still sell out onto the world’s oceans,” he continued.
“To achieve this effect, arming them might at some point be a logical step. That changes our calculations: how much risk I can take of ending up in a situation [where a shadow fleet vessel is boarded] with armed force on board or not.”
The US has insisted that cable and pipeline damages were not the result of sabotage but Mr Kaack said it was impossible for crews not to notice anchors slipping as the sound is “like a tank driving over a cobblestoned market square”.
It comes as police investigate a campaign of sabotage against German naval facilities on land. Two workers were arrested on suspicion of pouring steel pellets into the engine of a naval corvette and removing caps from fuel tanks.
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