Investigating train derailments as possible acts of sabotage – NRK Troms and Finnmark

– Säpo continuously cooperates with the police, and when we cannot immediately rule out interference from a foreign power, they cooperate in investigating the cases. Otherwise, it is a police matter, says Säpo’s press officer Fredrik Hultgren-Friberg to the Financial Times newspaper.

Several European security and intelligence services believe that Russia is planning extensive sabotage actions against European infrastructure.

The Swedish security service Säpo tells the Financial Times that several rail derailments in the country recently are under investigation as possible sabotage by foreign powers.

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson confirms to the Swedish media on Sunday evening that the information in the article is correct.

More train derailments in Sweden

According to the newspaper, the two train derailments, on 17 December 2023 and 26 February this year, on the strategically important Malmbanan, are under investigation by Swedish police and Säpo.

This despite the fact that both Bane Nor and the Swedish Accident Investigation Board believe that it was most likely a technical failure that was behind the derailments.

In addition to the derailment at Malmbanan, another train derailed near the town of Gnarp on 12 April on the Swedish east coast.

Two days later, on 14 April, another train derailed a hundred meters from a platform in Linköping.

– The track is completely torn to pieces, said Henry Peltonen, traffic manager and traffic informant in Östgötatrafiken to SVT.

Warnings across Europe

The Financial Times has spoken to British, German and Swedish intelligence services, who confirm a common picture across Europe.

On 22 April, the German intelligence service announced that it needed increased resources and powers to monitor financial flows following growing concerns about potential Russian funding of regional far-right parties ahead of European parliamentary elections.

– I hope to get extended powers to monitor economic developments, said German intelligence chief Thomas Haldenwang at a press conference, according to Reuters.

In March, it became known that a Russian network had paid European politicians in Germany, France, Poland, Belgium, the Netherlands and Hungary, via the media website Voice of Europe, to influence the upcoming elections for the European Parliament.

German newspaper Der Spiegel reported that Czech authorities believe the money was either handed over in cash at secret meetings in Prague or through cryptocurrency exchanges.

Other events:

This is in addition to PST confirming to NRK on Friday that they also believe that Russia may be preparing sabotage against critical infrastructure in Norway.

– We see that part of Russia’s purpose may be to prepare acts of sabotage. They operate throughout the district and move around, said head of PST West, Torgils Lutro to NRK before the weekend.

Large financial losses from the derailment

The derailments on Malmbanan have led to major financial consequences for the Swedish ore company LKAB, which is dependent on being able to export iron ore via the railway line to the shipping port in Narvik.

According to SVT Norrbotten, LKAB has canceled one of three transports on Malmbanan throughout March, and three hundred employees have been notified of possible redundancies following a drop in production.

Seafood loss in Norway

The derailment has also cost money in Norway.

According to Sjømat Norge, Norwegian fish producers have lost billions in the 76-day transport stoppage caused by the derailments.

– For fish transport, there is talk of a loss of value of close to NOK 4 billion in the two months the track has been closed, said Børge Edvardsen Klingan, port director in Narvik harbor, to Fiskeribladet in April.

Sjømat Norge informs the newspaper that Norwegian fish is transported annually from Northern Norway, via the Ofot Line. PST believes that Russia uses social media to recruit “spies” in the North. The police chief in Finnmark confirms increased activity from the Russian side.

In March, the Swedish authorities started a study for a new double track on the railway line. On the Swedish side alone, such a development will cost SEK 120 billion, and is expected to take 20 years.

At the same time, the income of the state-owned mining company LKAB is high, and has been between NOK 16 and 20 billion in recent years.

Swedish authorities confirm

Sweden has its own information that there is an “increased Russian ambition” to carry out sabotage on European soil, says Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson (M) to SVT Nyheter.

He says that the information about the Swedish investigation into foreign interference, which the Financial Times has published, is correct.

– We work closely with other countries to be able to discover such things, he says according to the Swedish website Omni.se.

Stoltenberg warns Russia

Just before the weekend, NATO’s Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, announced that NATO is troubled by a series of events in Europe recently.

He refers to events in the Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Great Britain.

– These are events that are part of an increasing number of activities Russia is carrying out across the entire Euro-Atlantic area, including the alliance’s territory and through third-party actors, he writes in a press release.

– We condemn Russia’s behavior and we encourage Russia to uphold its international obligations, as the allies do theirs. Russia’s actions will not deter allies from continuing to support Ukraine, he concluded.