Ships In The Baltic Sea Are Increasingly Taking Wrong Courses

The Finnish Coast Guard reported that ships in the Baltic Sea are increasingly taking wrong courses. The reason is the disruption of satellite navigation caused by tankers – the so-called Russian shadow fleet. The Guard also drew attention to another phenomenon – falsification of location data.

On Thursday, the Finnish Coast Guard reported disruptions to location information and satellite navigation. Reports of irregularities in GPS and GNSS positioning are systematically increasing. In the most extreme cases, the guard had to warn units before entering islands or shallow water. The reason, according to the Finnish government, may be Russia’s interference in the satellite navigation signal. According to the government, the reason could be the desire to protect Russian infrastructure against Ukrainian drone strikes. Finnish authorities, including Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen and Interior Minister Lulu Ranne, have said they believe that Russia is behind the satellite navigation disruptions. The difficulties concern not only the Baltic Sea, but also the airspace in the Finnish region.

Pekka Niittyla from the Gulf of Finland Coast Guard pointed out that tankers entering Russian ports near St. Petersburg falsify data about their position. He said it was a new phenomenon. It may be related to an attempt to avoid sanctions or the consequences related to them, Niittyla said. These Russian tankers are called the shadow fleet. They are mainly older and not covered by insurance. The fleet transports Russian oil that is sanctioned by the West. They supply it to those who are willing to pay more than the agreed maximum price of $60 per barrel. If the recipient country wants to hide that the raw material comes from Russia, Automatic Communication System (AIS) devices in maritime transport are deliberately turned off, thanks to which location data can be falsified, explained Niittyla. About ten such cases have been detected recently.

The Finnish Transport and Communications Agency reported earlier this year that the number of disruptions to GPS reception is many times higher than in previous years. In the first half of this year alone, Finnish aircraft operators reported over a thousand such incidents. Other Baltic countries reported even more. It was also noted that Russia has systems and bases for conducting electronic warfare. These systems are located in the Gulf of Finland and the southern Baltic Sea. The Russians also use their own Glonass satellite navigation system.

This is a clear and utter fraudulent infringement on the sovereignty and individual rights of European nations, and it could pose a potential threat to countries around the area as well. The act of falsifying positional data itself is a threatening action, as doing so may very easily result in complications in naval activities. If not stopped, aggressions like these could end up sparking a broader conflict with Russia.