Sweden confirms mystery ‘Russian sub’…was in fact a workboat

[Zarvan]

ARCHIVE PHOTO: Swedish corvette HMS Visby patrols the Stockholm Archipelago October 19 2014, searching for what the military says is a foreign threat in the waters (Reuters / Marko Savala)

EU, Mass media, Military, Navy, Security,Vessels
The unknown foreign vessel the Swedish Navy searched for near Stockholm last autumn was actually a “workboat,” a senior navy official says. Local media had alleged a hunt was on to try and find a Russian submarine, which was believed to be in the area.

Swedish Rear Admiral Anders Grenstad told the Swedish TT news agency on Saturday that what was thought to be a vessel or a foreign submarine was actually just a “workboat.”


Read moreSwedish military wants $700mn to hunt subs after autumn ‘chase’


The Swedish Navy changed the wording from“probable submarine” to “non-submarine”when referring to the reconnaissance mission connected to the unidentified vessel spotted in the Stockholm archipelago.

The massive hunt was used by the Swedish Defense Ministry to justify a six billion kronor ($696 million) hike in defense spending between 2016 and 2020.

The drama started after an amateur photograph of an alleged underwater vessel of unidentified origin was sent to the ministry. The man who took the photo raised the alarm because he thought he saw the object surface and disappear again.

Sweden undertook an intense one-week search in late October, looking for possible “foreign underwater activity” near Stockholm. During the operation, the Swedish Navy reportedly used over 200 troops, helicopters, stealth ships and minesweepers to search the waters of the Baltic Sea.


Read moreSweden deploys troops near Stockholm due to alleged underwater threat


During the search, the Swedish media exaggerated the story, claiming country’s navy was looking for a submarine in the Baltic Sea, which allegedly belonged to Russia.

Meanwhile, naval officials from Sweden and Russia maintained there was no substance to the reports, which was confirmed by Grenstad.

“From the information we have, we cannot draw the same conclusion as the media that there is a damaged U-boat. We have no information about an emergency signal or the use of an emergency channel,” the navy official said.

A full report of the search operations will be published later this spring, the Swedish newspaper Svenska Dagbladet reported.
Sweden confirms mystery ‘Russian sub’…was in fact a workboat — RT News

 

[ptldM3]

At least they came forward and manned up they were wrong which is admirable. I loved reading all the comments on chat rooms/blogs accusing Russia, even members on PDF kept claiming that some blurry blob on a photo was "proof".

 

[East or West India Best]

Russians just wanna have some fun. We all love nautanki/tamasha.

 

[Galad]

And where all usual suspects now who quickly jumped the hate-wagon(as well-trained obedient "voters") and blamed Russia then?Why not come out and discuss such news?They are hiding(mind it not in shame-shame is something non-existent for them).Coming out and saying I was wrong is so so hard for them.

 

[Hindustani78]

Swedish Rear Adm. Anders Grenstad confirmed to the media, said Russia was indeed sailing submarines around Swedish waters last year: "The assessment that Swedish territory was violated in October 2014 remains correct in its entirety."

We could not help but notice the article in the Swedish media quoting Navy Rear Admiral A. Grenstad Sweden concerning the large-scale operation in Swedish territorial waters last Autumn to search for an unidentified foreign object underwater — allegedly a Russian submarine. In fact, as the Swedish Rear Admiral admitted, this object was a "technical ship."

While the individual sighting on October 31 was dismissed, the Swedish military remains convinced that incursions by a reconnaissance submarine into Swedish territorial waters did occur on October 17 and 24.

More than 200 service personnel took part in the search for the submarine as the military deployed minesweepers, helicopters, and an anti-submarine ship. At the time, Swedish intelligence reported intercepting encrypted messages that appeared to confirm the presence of at least one vessel, with another located in Kaliningrad, the base of Russia's Baltic Fleet.