The crew of a Russian ship in the Baltic Sea fired signalling ammunition at a Bundeswehr helicopter, which was conducting a reconnaissance mission, according to German press.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock mentioned the incident on the fringes of a NATO meeting in Brussels, but did not give any details.

Baerbock announced on social media platform X that surveillance of pipelines and data cables in the Baltic Sea would be stepped up as hybrid threats from Russia and its supporters were on the rise. The use of signalling ammunition is only permitted in emergencies.

“Putin is attacking our peace order with hybrid attacks,” the minister wrote.

The incident occurred against the backdrop of increasing tensions in the region.

Last month, damage to two sets of communication cables in the Baltic Sea — linking Finland and Germany and Sweden and Lithuania — in less than a day has drawn the authorities’ attention to possible subterfuge.

German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius declared the severing of a communication cable between Germany and Finland an act of “sabotage” and implied that “hybrid actors” were behind the attack. However, the reason for the attack was not yet known, Pistorius added.

Sweden, Germany and Lithuania all launched investigations last week, looking into the role the Chinese vessel Yi Peng 3 played in the incident, as it was in the vicinity of the damaged cables at the time.

Several European governments and NATO’s secretary-general have accused Russia of ramping up hybrid attacks on Western nations since it launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Moscow has repeatedly denied responsibility for such attacks.

Hybrid warfare typically refers to activities designed to destabilise nations through non-traditional and diverse means, including cyberattacks, infrastructure sabotage and misinformation campaigns.

These tactics often aim to weaken states without provoking direct military conflict.