STOCKHOLM, November 20. /TASS/. The Swedish police have requested the country’s armed forces to assist in its investigation into the damage inflicted on two underwater communication cables in the Baltic Sea, the Swedish military’s press service said.

The Swedish Navy assigned the mission to a number of ships fitted with equipment for underwater and diving operations, including remotely controlled submersibles. They are to collect information for the police and the prosecutors.

"We are working closely with other Swedish governmental agencies and our allies, exchanging information with them. Our armed forces have a pretty good picture of all surface movements along our coastline," Sweden’s Chief of Navy Rear Adm. Johan Norlen was quoted as saying in the statement.

Earlier, the Swedish Prosecution Authority launched a preliminary investigation into the cable rupture on suspicion of a sabotage act.

Two underwater cables were damaged in the Baltic Sea on November 17 and 18. One connected Germany and Finland, and the other Sweden and Lithuania. The first cable runs along the Nord Stream pipeline. Its failure was reported by the Finnish government-owned telecom operator Cinia. According to the company, the repair of the cable could take from 5 to 15 days. The German and Finnish foreign ministries in a joint statement on Monday expressed concern over the damage and said a thorough investigation was underway. The damage to the second cable was later reported by the Swedish telecom company Telia.