Norwegian police seized a Russian-crewed ship on suspicion of being involved in causing “serious damage” to a fiber cable in the Baltic Sea between Latvia and Sweden.

Latvia said it had dispatched a warship on Sunday after damage to a fibre optic cable to Sweden that may have been "due to external factors". The statement added: "Based on current findings, it is presumed that the cable is significantly damaged due to external factors.

Norwegian police have arrested a ship suspected of damaging a telecoms cable between Latvia and Sweden last weekend, according to the Norwegian public broadcaster NRK.