After a leak led to the shutdown of the Balticconnector pipeline on 8 October, Finnish authorities have been investigating the damage they say was caused by “external” activity. On Friday, they said their focus was on the Newnew Polar Bear, a cargo ship that reportedly came under Chinese ownership this year. Nato vows to respond if Finland-Estonia gas pipeline damage is deliberate“The movements of the vessel Newnew Polar Bear flying the flag of Hong Kong coincide with the time and place of the gas pipeline damage,” Finland’s National Bureau of Investigation said. The police will attempt to lift the object from the seabed, where it lies deep in the clay, to investigate whether it is connected to the damaged pipeline. After completing its crime scene investigation into the gas pipeline damage on Thursday, samples are now being analysed in in the bureau’s forensic library.

Source: The Guardian October 21, 2023 01:46 UTC