Inside the mission to stop Putin’s ‘ghost ships’ wreaking havoc on the seas

On Christmas Day last year, Finland and Estonia got an unwanted shock. A power line that ran along the seabed between the two countries was damaged, slashing electricity flow by two thirds. The next day, Finnish police boarded and seized a ship carrying Russian oil bound for Turkey on suspicion of cutting the line along with four nearby internet cables. The Cook Islands-registered ship, named the Eagle S, was later found to have dragged its anchor along the ocean floor for more than 100 kilometres. European Union leaders labelled it sabotage and levelled blame at Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” or…