![]() The shallow and crowded seaway can only be accessed through three narrow straits that submarines can't pass through without being detected. With an average of 1,500 vessels per day trafficking the Baltic according to the Commission on Security and Cooperation In Europe, it is one of the world's busiest seaways – and there is really only one way out, the Kattegatt Sea between Denmark and Sweden. The Gotland is based at Karlskrona, about 350 km across the Baltic from Kaliningrad. A careless crew member dropping a wrench or slamming a cupboard door can lead to detection. In submarine warfare, Linden said, the primary question is where the adversary is. In terms of how quiet they are, the engines they use, they are particularly quiet and very maneuverable." "There is nothing that beats them, quite literally. "I would say, without a doubt, that the Gotland-class and the German Type 212 are the most capable non-nuclear submarines in the world," said Bruns. The Gotlands, like Germany's modern Type 212 submarines, will be among NATO's most advanced non-nuclear submarines and can stay out of port for significantly longer than most other conventional models, the researcher Bruns said read more. On a typical mission, which lasts two to three weeks, there is no communication with headquarters, he said. "This can be the loneliest place in the world," says Linden, who captained the vessel for many years. Its capabilities at Kaliningrad also include medium-range ballistic missiles. The Kiel institute expects Russia to add one to three submarines in the coming years, to bring its Baltic submarine total to four, along with its fleet of around six modern warships. Maps showing marine traffic through the Baltic "NOTHING BEATS THEM"īut that risk, too, may recede when Sweden joins NATO.ĭown beneath the Baltic Sea waterline, the submarine commander Linden shows a reporter the captain's quarters of the Gotland, one of four submarines currently in Sweden's fleet, which will bring NATO's total in the Baltic countries to 12 by 2028. Finland is investing some 150 million euros to renew the base to be able to host half a new fleet of 64 F-35 fighter jets, due to arrive from 2026. The nearby town of Rovaniemi, known to tourists as the home of Santa Claus, is also the base of Finland's Arctic air force and would serve as a military hub for the region in case of a conflict. This became clear in May, when Finland hosted its first Arctic military exercise as a NATO member at one of Europe's largest artillery training grounds 25 km above the Arctic Circle. And thinking about potential defence plans, it's for us a huge step forward, to consider it as a whole area now." "With (existing) NATO nations Norway and Denmark, now we have a whole bloc. He chaired the working group which led Finland's military integration into NATO. "For NATO it's quite important to have now the whole northern part, to see it as a whole piece," Lieutenant Colonel Michael Maus from NATO's Allied Command Transformation told Reuters. The region from the Baltic in the south to the high north may become almost an integrated operating area for NATO. Maps showing marine traffic through the Baltic "A WHOLE PIECE"īoth developments show how the expanded alliance will reshape Europe's security map. Norway is also ordering four new submarines, with delivery of the first due in 2029. NATO-member Denmark phased out its submarine fleet in 2004, part of a move to scale back its military capabilities after the end of the Cold War, and it has yet to decide on future investments. Paukkunen's institute estimates Western armed forces are militarily about 10 years behind Russia in the Arctic.Įven with the losses that Russia has sustained in Ukraine, the naval component of the Northern Fleet and the strategic bombers remain intact, Paukkunen said. Russia's defence ministry did not respond to a request for comment. Russia has been actively developing its military and hybrid capabilities in the Arctic against the West, partly under the cover of international environmental and economic cooperation, the FIIA's Deputy Director Samu Paukkunen told Reuters. "We will cover the parts that are interesting with our sensors and with our weapons."Īnalysts say the change is not before time. "With five submarines we can close the Baltic Sea," Linden told Reuters. Sweden's contribution will, by 2028, include a new generation of submarines in the Baltic Sea that Fredrik Linden, Commander of Sweden's First Submarine Flotilla, says will make a big difference in protecting vulnerable seabed infrastructure and preserving access – currently major security headaches, as the September 2022 destruction of the Nord Stream gas pipelines read more showed. Maps showing marine traffic through the Balticīesides opening its territory, Helsinki is buying the right assets, particularly fighter jets, "to add value to (the) northeastern defence and, frankly, in a conflict put Russia at risk," he said.
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