Sweden confirms suspicion of sabotage
Bhe explosions on the pipes of Nord Stream Pipelines 1 and 2 were a “serious act of sabotage”. This was shared by those responsible for investigating the leaks in the Exclusive Economic Zone Sweden responsible public prosecutor’s office and the Swedish domestic intelligence service Säpo on Friday.
Chief Prosecutor Mats Ljungqvist said in a statement that there had been “extensive confiscations” during investigations into the crime scene. Säpo also writes about several foreign bodies that have been secured. “The analyzes now carried out show explosive residues on several of the foreign objects found,” said Ljungqvist. However, they did not comment on a possible suspect or cause.
Germany helped with the investigation
At the end of September, a total of four leaks in three of the four pipes in the pipeline were discovered within a few hours. Both pipes of the Nord Stream 1 pipeline were affected, through which Russia had stopped delivering gas to Germany weeks earlier, as well as a pipe of the Nord Stream 2 pipelinewhich never went into operation, but was still filled with gas.
The leaks are near the Danish island of Bornholm, partly in the Swedish and partly in the Danish Exclusive Economic Zone. The Swedes investigated the leaks in their economic zone, and Germany also helped with the investigations. “The cooperation with the authorities in Sweden and other countries is excellent,” said Ljungqvist.
For the continuation of the preliminary investigations and for the various ongoing collaborations, it is important to be able to work in peace, he said. The advanced analytical work would continue in order to “draw more reliable conclusions about the incident”. The preliminary investigation was very complex and extensive, said the public prosecutor. “The ongoing investigation will show whether anyone can be suspected of a crime.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman said the Swedish findings “confirmed the information that the Russian side had and has”. It is very important to find out “who is behind this explosion,” said Dmitry Peskov. Putin has repeatedly described the incident as a terrorist attack, suggesting that the United States, Poland and Ukraine are behind it.
