Ship captain denies deliberate damage to Finnish undersea infrastructure

The captain of a container ship that allegedly damaged an undersea cable in Finnish waters is claiming trial to accusations of maliciously damaging the infrastructure.

Wan Wenguo, the 43-year-old Chinese national who was at the helm of the Newnew Polar Bear, a 2005-built 1638 TEU vessel in the fleet of Russia-focused Chinese line Yangpu Newnew Shipping, on 11 February pleaded not guilty to one count of criminal damage and to the two charges received from Hong Kong’s Marine Department. Hong Kong courts are trying the case as the ship was Hong Kong-flagged at the time of the incident in October 2023.