An Akula-class submarine underway, circa April 1990. Western officials recently revealed that NATO forces had prevented an Akula-class submarine and two GUGI deep sea research submarines from cutting undersea cables near Svalbard, Norway, in April. (Department of Defense)

NATO Accuses Russia of Attempting to Cut Undersea Cables

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Western officials said they disrupted and “chased away” the Russian submarines that attempted to cut undersea cables near Norway earlier this year.

Norway, the UK, and the US countered a Russian submarine exercise that included training on cutting undersea cables earlier this year, but the incident was only partially disclosed publicly last week. The confrontation occurred in the spring near Svalbard, a remote Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic region, Reuters first reported on Thursday, citing two unnamed Western officials familiar with the matter.

The officials told the news agency that Russian submarines and other spy vessels assigned to the Main Directorate of Deep-Sea Research, a Kremlin unit that specializes in undersea warfare and covert operations, were conducting a deep-sea test when NATO forces disrupted the actions. The Russian vessels, which include two GUGI deep-sea research submarines and a Russian Navy Akula-class........

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