'Lonely' whale trained as Russian spy spotted off the coast of Sweden
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A beluga whale believes to have been trained by the Russian Navy has been spotted in Sweden (Picture: AFP)
A harness-wearing whale suspected of being trained as a spy by the Russian Navy has reappeared off the coast of Sweden.
Norwegian fishermen first discovered the mysterious creature in 2019, when a white male beluga whale wearing a strange harness began to harass fishing boats in Norways Finnmark region.
The strange behaviour of the whale, which was actively seeking out the vessels and trying to pull straps and ropes from the sides of the boats, caused concern among the fishermen, and upon closer inspection they discovered a camera mount and the words Equipment St.Petersburg engraved onto its harness.
Marine biologists previously said it is 'undoubtable' that the whale had been trained by Russia, who have been known to use marine creatures to conduct special military operations.
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If this whale comes from Russia and there is great reason to believe it then it is not Russian scientists, but rather the navy that has done this, said Martin Biuw of the Institute of Marine Research in Norway at the time.
Russian authorities did not confirm or deny the speculation.
The whale has reportedly spent the past three years making its way slowly across the Norwegian coastline, but in recent days has sped up its movements and made its way over to neighbouring Sweden, where residents have been warned to avoid contact with the possible spy.
'We don't know why he has sped up so fast right now,' especially since he is moving 'very quickly away from his natural environment', Sebastian Strand, a marine biologist with the OneWhale organisation, told AFP.
'It could be hormones driving him to find a mate. Or it could be loneliness as Belugas are a very social species - it could be that he's searching for other Beluga whales.'
Believed to be 13-14 years old, Strand said the whale is 'at an age where his hormones are very high'.
The closest population of belugas is located in the Svalbard archipelago, which lies midway between the northern coast of Norway and the north pole.
The whale, nicknamed Hvaldimir, was first discovered wearing a Russian harness with a camera mount attached to it (Picture: Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries)
The whale is not believed to have seen a single other beluga since arriving in Norway in April 2019.
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Norwegians nicknamed him Hvaldimir a pun on whale in Norwegian, hval, and a nod to its alleged association with Russia.
The Barents Sea is a strategic geopolitical area where Western and Russian submarine movements are monitored.
It is also the gateway to the Northern Route that shortens maritime journeys between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
The whale is thought to be feeling lonely, which has prompted its sudden change of location (Picture: Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries)
Strand said the whale's health 'seemed to be very good' in recent years, foraging wild fish under Norway's salmon farms.
But his organisation was concerned about Hvaldimir's ability to find food in Sweden, and already observed some weight loss.
In the 1980s. Soviet Russia oversaw a programme which recruited dolphins for military training, with their intelligence, memory and stealth making them effective tools for underwater operations.
Although the mammal programme was officially closed in the 1990s, it was revealed in 2017 that the Russian navy had once again been training beluga whales, seals and bottlenose dolphins for military purposes in polar waters.
Vladimir Putin has since reopened three former Soviet military bases along its vast Arctic coastline, and is believed to have been training beluga whales to guard entrances to naval bases, assist deepwater divers and if necessary kill any strangers who enter their territory.
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Tuesday, May 30, 2023 at 9:17 am