German investigators storm yacht after Nord Stream pipeline blasts

By dpa correspondents l Wednesday, March 08, 2023

 

BERLIN – A ship suspected of links to the explosion that damaged the Nord Stream natural gas pipelines was searched by German investigators in January, German federal prosecutors said on Wednesday.

The revelation of the search of the yacht, which is suspected of having been used to transport explosives, comes hours after several media reports suggested that a pro-Ukrainian group may have been behind the September 2022 explosions.

German investigators did not release any information about the outcome of the search or comment on potential suspects in the blasts, which badly damaged the pipelines that run through the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany.

The New York Times reported on Tuesday that intelligence authorities believe a pro-Ukrainian group could have carried out the act of sabotage but that there was “no evidence” linking it to President Volodymyr Zelensky or his top aides.

The newspaper, citing anonymous intelligence officials, reported the explosives were probably “planted with the help of experienced divers who did not appear to be working for military or intelligence services.”

German public broadcasters ARD and SWR and Die Zeit newspaper also published a similar report shortly after the New York Times suggesting that clues point to Ukrainian saboteurs. The government in Kiev denies any responsibility.

“This is not our activity,” Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov said on Tuesday when asked about the reports at a meeting of EU defence ministers.

Reznikov expressed confidence in ongoing international probes but said reports of covert Ukrainian involvement were “like a compliment for our special forces.”

Moscow denies being behind the incident and has suggested another actor, such as the US, would have the most to benefit from an attack on the energy infrastructure. Die Zeit reported on Tuesday evening that authorities in Germany, Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands and the United States have been involved in the investigations.

The suspicious yacht was, according to media reports, rented by a Poland-based company that “apparently belongs to two Ukrainians.”

In addition, a team consisting of a captain, two divers, two diving assistants and a doctor had brought the explosives to the crime scenes. As they apparently used forged passports, the individuals’ nationalities remained unclear.

A German government spokesman, Steffen Hebestreit, declined to directly address the reports, noting only that Sweden, Denmark and Germany had only recently informed the UN Security Council that the investigation remains ongoing.

German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said it was important to distinguish if the perpetrators, if they were Ukrainian, were acting “without the knowledge of the government.”

Pistorius also cautioned “against jumping to conclusions” and warned the sabotage may have been a false flag operation. In a so-called false flag operation, perpetrators deliberately lay false tracks that point to other actors as a form of misdirection.

Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson on Tuesday evening also declined to comment on the issue. “Right now in Sweden there is now an ongoing criminal investigation when it comes to Nord Stream, so I don’t plan to comment on the information at this stage,” he said at a press conference with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg

Stoltenberg said it was known that the explosions were the result of “an attack … an instance of sabotage … against critical infrastructure for Europe.” It would be wrong “to speculate who is behind that until the investigations and inquiries have been concluded.”

The September explosions badly damaged the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines and led to the rapid release of natural gas, even though neither pipeline was actually delivering gas amid an energy stand-off between the European Union and Russia.

German energy company EON, which holds a 15.5% stake in the Nord Stream 1 pipeline operator, said on Wednesday that it had not ruled out potentially repairing the pipeline.

But an EON spokesman told the Rheinische Post newspaper that there has been no proposal to do so from pipeline operator Nord Stream AG, which is majority owned by Russian state-owned firm Gazprom.

The EON spokesman said that “repairing the pipelines would be challenging and would require the clarification of many issues: technical, commercial and legal.”