Latvia on Sunday said it had sent a warship to investigate the latest apparent act of sabotage in the Baltic, as Sweden reported at least one undersea optic fibre cable linking the two countries had been damaged.

Russia claims to have captured the strategically important Ukrainian town of Velyka Novosilka, as Vladimir Putin’s forces continue their push in the Donetsk region.While Moscow’s claims could not be independently verified,

Russian law enforcement officers appealed to the authorities of Latvia, where actor Arthur Smolyaninov allegedly lives ***, with a request to assist in the investigation of the criminal case initiated against him.

Latvia's prime minister says her government has reached out to Sweden and other Baltic Sea allies in NATO for assistance as it investigates the cause of damage to an underwater fiber-optic data cable running to Sweden.

The Arelion submarine cable, which connects the Swedish island of Gotland to Lithuania, and the C-Lion 1 submarine communications cable that runs between Finland's capital Helsinki and the German city of Rostock were also damaged in mid-November near Sweden's territorial waters.

Sweden was spurred to join NATO in response to the security threat posed by Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. It has sent its troops to Latvia, which borders Russia and its ally Belarus. As a former Soviet republic, Latvia has highlighted the threat posed by Moscow after the war in Ukraine.

Sunday's rupture follows a string of incidents that have heightened fears of Russian sabotage and spying in the strategic region. #EuropeNews

Disruption of the line between Sweden and Latvia follows earlier incidents linked to suspected sabotage by Russia and China.

Latvia dispatched a warship on Sunday after damage to a fibre optic cable to Sweden that may have been “due to external factors”. The navy said it had identified a “suspect vessel”, the Michalis San,

On Sunday morning, an undersea fiber-optic cable belonging to the Latvian State Radio and Television Center (LVRTC) was damaged in the Baltic Sea, the center reported.

Undersea cable between Sweden and Latvia damaged, as attention focuses on Malta-flagged vessel that sailed from Russia.