Russia has assembled a fleet of hundreds of vessels to covertly ship its oil. With so many ships at sea, the idea of using some to cause havoc may be proving irresistible to the Kremlin.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has raised concerns about Russia’s so-called "shadow fleet" following recent damage to undersea cables across Europe. "Almost every month, ships are currently damaging important undersea cables in the Baltic Sea,

Customs officials have seized tens of thousands of tons of fuel transported from Russia by the tanker Eagle S. The crew of this ship is suspected of damaging the EstLink 2 underwater power cable in the Gulf of Finland.