Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

What We're Watching

Sweden wants to inspect a suspicious Chinese ship

A view of the anchor of the Chinese ship, the bulk carrier Yi Peng 3, in the sea of Kattegat, near the City of Grenaa in Jutland, Denmark, on Nov. 20, 2024.

A view of the anchor of the Chinese ship, the bulk carrier Yi Peng 3, in the sea of Kattegat, near the City of Grenaa in Jutland, Denmark, on Nov. 20, 2024.

Mikkel Berg Pedersen/Ritzau Scanpix/via REUTERS
Make us preferred on Google
On Nov. 17 and 18, two underwater Baltic Sea communications cables – one connecting Sweden with Lithuania and the other Finland with Germany – were cut under suspicious circumstances. Many in Europe initially suspected deliberate sabotage by Russia, but a preliminary investigation found that a Chinese cargo ship had passed through the Baltic Sea near each cable around the time they were severed.

A year ago, you’ll recall that another Chinese-flagged vessel dragged an anchor that damaged an undersea gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia.

This latest Chinese vessel is now anchored in international waters between Sweden and Denmark, and Swedish authorities, without leveling any accusation, have requested that the ship enter Swedish waters and welcome inspectors on board to investigate. It remains unclear whether the Chinese ship will comply.

This episode comes at a time of heightened alert for Russian sabotage attacks on European infrastructure in response to EU support for Ukraine. In particular, Russian involvement is suspected in a number of fires and mail bombs across the continent.

More For You

People walk past near a campaign billboard featuring Milorad Dodik, Aco Stanisic, Savo Minic, Zeljka Cvijanovic and Damjan Skipina, candidates of the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD) in Bosnia and Herzegovina's 2026 general election, in Pale, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

People walk past near a campaign billboard featuring Milorad Dodik, Aco Stanisic, Savo Minic, Zeljka Cvijanovic and Damjan Skipina, candidates of the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD) in Bosnia and Herzegovina's 2026 general election, in Pale, Bosnia and Herzegovina, September 29, 2026.

REUTERS/Amel Emric
EU vs. Russia on the ballot in BosniaBosnians will head to the polls this weekend for elections in one of the world’s most complicated political systems. Voters will elect three national presidents representing three main ethnic groups – one Bosniak, one Croat, and one Serb. Collectively, they serve as the country’s head of state. But the biggest [...]
In this drone view an inflatable dinghy carrying migrants makes its way towards England in the English Channel, Britain.

In this drone view an inflatable dinghy carrying migrants makes its way towards England in the English Channel, Britain, August 6, 2024.

REUTERS/Chris J. Ratcliffe
One in, one out, all done: UK and France scrap migration pactLast year the two countries struck a landmark deal to reduce the number of asylum seekers crossing the English Channel from France in small boats: for each undocumented migrant that the UK returned to France, British authorities would accept an asylum applicant with known family links in [...]
A plane, carrying passengers who were on the FlyDubai aircraft bound for Israel from the United Arab Emirates, which was diverted to Saudi Arabia following an emergency signal, on the tarmac as it arrives at the Ben Gurion International Airport, in Lod, near Tel Aviv, Israel.

A plane, carrying passengers who were on the FlyDubai aircraft bound for Israel from the United Arab Emirates, which was diverted to Saudi Arabia following an emergency signal, on the tarmac as it arrives at the Ben Gurion International Airport, in Lod, near Tel Aviv, Israel, September 30, 2026.

REUTERS/Ammar Awad
Attempted hijacking suspected in Dubai-Israel flight chaos A flight from Dubai to Israel plunged nearly 20,000 feet on Wednesday during a blood-spattered fight in the cockpit. Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said the co-pilot had tried to stab the pilot in an attempt to hijack the plane and crash it. Passengers and crew intervened to land the plane [...]
Rohingya refugees gather in front of the office of the U.N. refugee agency after being evicted from their homes, at Kuala Lumpur Malaysia.

Rohingya refugees gather in front of the office of the U.N. refugee agency after being evicted from their homes, at Kuala Lumpur Malaysia July 27, 2026.

REUTERS/Hasnoor Hussain
Malaysia sends Rohingya back to Myanmar despite security concernsThe Malaysian government started repatriating Rohingya refugees to Myanmar today with the goal of sending about 5,000 home over the next few weeks. Since 2017, millions of Rohingya, a predominantly Muslim ethnic minority, have fled Myanmar amid widespread persecution under both [...]