The New York Times recently reported that information accessed by U.S. intelligence pointed to a “pro-Ukrainian group” as being responsible for the sabotage of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea, which occurred last year. The gas leaks, preceded by underwater explosions, were detected in September 2022, fuelling already high tensions between Russia and Ukraine.
The perpetrators of the sabotage would be “opponents of Vladimir Putin”
The New York Times does not specify the nature of the information to which the American intelligence had access, nor the identity of this “pro-Ukrainian group”. According to U.S. officials, however, there is no indication that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was involved in the sabotage. Information gathered suggests that the perpetrators were “opponents of Russian President Vladimir Putin,” probably Ukrainian or Russian nationals, according to the newspaper.
The New York Times says that this information allows “no firm conclusion” and “leaves open the possibility that the operation was launched secretly by a third force with ties to the Ukrainian government or its security services. Investigations by the Swedish, Danish and German authorities have not yet determined who is responsible.
Mutual accusations
At the time of the incident, the pipelines were out of service but contained significant amounts of methane gas. Western countries had accused Russia of being responsible for these explosions, adding to the anger aimed at Moscow after the launch of its offensive in Ukraine. Russia had accused the “Anglo-Saxons” of being behind this sabotage.
The United States denies the accusations
In a recent article, American investigative journalist Seymour Hersh wrote that U.S. Navy divers, aided by Norway, allegedly planted explosives on these pipelines in June, triggering their explosion three months later. The United States called the information “totally false”.
Exacerbated geopolitical tensions
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the two pipelines have been at the heart of geopolitical tensions, fanned after Moscow’s decision to cut off gas supplies to Europe in alleged retaliation for Western sanctions. The revelation of the possible involvement of a “pro-Ukrainian group” in the sabotage only aggravates the tensions between the two countries, and complicates the investigations to determine the responsibilities in this incident.
