The Chinese vessel Yi Peng 3 has departed and is currently en route to Egypt, with Port Said as one of its expected destinations.

On November 17 and 18, 2024, sections of two telecommunications cables were severed within Swedish territorial waters in the Baltic Sea. Vessel tracking data places the Yi Peng 3 in the vicinity of the damage during the relevant time frame, raising suspicions about its involvement.

At the time of the incident, the Yi Peng 3 was anchored in international waters within the Kattegat Strait, situated between Sweden and Denmark. On Saturday, the vessel was reported by Vesselfinder to have departed northward out of the strait, a movement later confirmed by Sweden’s Coast Guard.

Despite the vessel allowing inspectors from Germany, Sweden, Finland, and Denmark to board, Chinese authorities denied Swedish public prosecutor Henrik Söderman, who is leading the criminal investigation, access to inspect the ship. Sweden has accused China of denying a request for Swedish prosecutors to board a Chinese ship that has been linked to the cutting of two undersea cables in the Baltic despite Beijing pledging “cooperation” with regional authorities.

Preliminary findings by the investigation team suggest the cable damage may have been caused by the ship’s anchors. Investigators have highlighted the necessity of interviewing the crew to gather further evidence.

This incident mirrors a similar event from October 2023, where an undersea gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia was damaged, reportedly by the anchor of another Chinese cargo vessel.

On December 23, 2024, ship tracking data indicates that the Yi Peng 3 is headed toward Egypt. As on Dec 25, the ship is located in English channel and headed towards Port Said in Egypt. Has China evaded punishment once again?