site.btaForeign Minister: No Bulgarian Sailors Arrested, Indicted after Anchor Allegedly Damaged Underwater Cable

Minister of Foreign Affairs Georg Georgiev reported here on Wednesday that the Swedish prosecution service informed him that there have been no arrests, no detainees, no indictments after the case with the damaged underwater fibre optic cable connecting Latvia and the Swedish island of Gotland.

On Monday, the Swedish Prosecution Authority said that it had launched a preliminary investigation on suspicion of sabotage under aggravating circumstances and had ordered the detention of a vessel in the Baltic Sea, suspected of damaging an underwater optical cable connecting Latvia and the Swedish island of Gotland. In connection with the case, the Swedish Coast Guard detained the Bulgarian bulk carrier Vezhen and its crew in Sweden's exclusive economic zone on suspicion that one of the ship's anchors had been dragged across the seabed on the night against Monday, causing damage to the cable.

Investigations are currently underway in Sweden, because the incident took place in its territorial waters, Georgiev said. He had no information on the progress of the investigation, as it is ongoing. A Bulgarian consul is already on the spot, ready to assist the Bulgarian crewmembers who were sailing on the Vezhen. He is yet to be allowed to board the ship and to talk to the sailors. On the other hand, the Bulgarian sailors are free to move around, get off the ship, talk to their relatives, and no restrictive action has been taken against them.

The Minister was adamant that Bulgaria, being a member of the EU and NATO, condemns in every possible way the undertaking of any sabotage or similar detrimental activity that might harm a partner of Bulgaria. He added that for the time being, there are few details on the case.