NATO to Develop Drone Fleet to Safeguard Baltic and Mediterranean Underwater Infrastructure

NATO is in the early stages of developing a fleet of unmanned vessels designed to protect critical underwater infrastructure in the Baltic and Mediterranean seas. The initiative follows a series of incidents involving damaged undersea cables in European waters.

Pierre Vandier, NATO's Commander of Concepts and Transformation, outlined the project in an interview with Defense News. He described the vision as akin to installing underwater surveillance akin to street cameras in urban areas, enabling continuous monitoring and evidence collection.

“We have the technology to create surveillance systems using unmanned surface vessels,” Vandier explained, adding that the project would initially focus on surface-level monitoring before expanding to underwater operations.

The initiative has already garnered strong support from NATO's central naval command, MARCOM, and the alliance’s operational headquarters, SACEUR. While details remain in development, officials are considering equipping the unmanned fleet with proven combat systems, drawing on lessons from Task Force 59 of the US Navy.

Task Force 59, established in 2021 and operating from Bahrain, integrates unmanned systems and artificial intelligence into the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet. Its experiments with over 23 unmanned systems and innovations like remote launches of sea-based drones have demonstrated the potential for enhanced maritime security.

Earlier, the Chinese bulk carrier Yi Peng 3 was suspected of deliberately dragging its anchor across the Baltic Sea, damaging two critical communication cables connecting Finland, Lithuania, and Germany.

Ship severed the cables while moving with its anchor down, despite its transponder being off, before being intercepted by Danish naval vessels. Investigators are probing potential links between the ship’s captain and Russian intelligence.