US Deploys Marines To Russia’s Backyard As NATO Braces For Undersea Sabotage
The U.S. military is deploying approximately 50 specialized Marines to the Baltic Sea to help NATO protect critical undersea internet cables and energy pipelines amid growing concerns over sabotage and Russian aggression.
Jillian Butler · Oct 28, 2026 · 2 min read
The U.S. military is deploying approximately 50 specialized Marines to the Baltic Sea to help NATO protect critical undersea internet cables and energy pipelines amid growing concerns over sabotage and Russian aggression.
The Marines, drawn from reconnaissance and intelligence units based at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, will join Finnish forces in NATO’s Baltic Sentry operation, using surveillance drones and coastal sensors to monitor vulnerable underwater infrastructure, Task & Purpose reported Tuesday. Regional infrastructure includes undersea cables and pipelines, which are essential to global financial transactions, internet connectivity, and national security, the U.S. Marine Corps announced in an Oct. 22 press release.
The Marines did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
“Maintaining stability along Europe’s critical maritime choke points protects the physical and economic security of the transatlantic community. As a defensive vigilance activity, Baltic Sentry underscores that the Alliance possesses the immediate readiness, technological adaptability, and collective resolve to deter and decisively defeat any threat to regional stability,” reads the Marine’s release.
Since the 2022 undersea explosion of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines, over half a dozen attempted attacks on such pipelines and undersea cables have occurred in the Baltic Sea, Task and Purpose reports.
Europe has the largest number of undersea cables in the world. Many of them pass through the Baltic Sea between Russia and the EU. These cables connect 95% of the world’s internet and carry approximately $10 trillion financial transactions daily, according to the European Council on Foreign Relations.
Approximately four dozen U.S. Marines from 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 2nd Marine Division and II Marine Expeditionary Force Information Group based out of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune will be deploying to the region, according to Task & Purpose. These Marines primarily specialize in intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.
“The experience, skills and systems of the U.S. Marine Corps are perfectly suited for supplementing our situation picture and supporting our monitoring of the Baltic Sea,” the Chief of Operations of the Finnish Navy, Captain Johan Tillander said in the statement.
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All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact [email protected].