Tri-Service

Finnish Military Fires Depth Charges At Suspected Submarine

The Finnish military has fired depth charges as a warning against a suspected submarine near Helsinki.

The incident, which led to the firing of the handheld underwater depth charges, comes amid growing tensions with neighbouring Russia, after a year of military border exercises and air force sorties from the Russian Armed Forces.

The Finnish navy said it fired the explosives, which are the size of grenades, after it noticed an underwater target on Monday and then again on Tuesday morning.

The country's Minister of Defence Carl Haglund didn't say whether Russia, which shares an 833-mile border with Finland, was involved, but said the target has likely left the area, and could have been a submarine.

He added that Finland has rarely used these type of warning charges.

"We strongly suspect that there has been underwater activity that does not belong there. Of course it is always serious if our territorial waters have been violated," Haglund told Finnish news agency STT.

Former Finnish marine infantry Commodore Olavi Jantunen, meanwhile, told Helsingin Sanomat newspaper:

"The bombs are not intended to damage the target, the purpose is to let the target know that it has been noticed."

Reports last year of a submarine spotted near Stockholm led to Sweden's biggest mobilisation since the Cold War.

Earlier this month, meanwhile, Nordic countries Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark and Iceland took the unprecedented step of making a joint announcement announcing increased defence co-operation in response to Russia's "challenge".

Moscow responded by labelling moves by Finland and Sweden towards fostering closer ties with NATO as of "special concern".