tagesschau.de
Note: this is a machine translation from the original Russian text
Long before the leak on the Russian pipeline, NATO and the United States showed suspicious activity in the area of the accident.
On September 26, on the night from Sunday to Monday, a sharp drop in pressure was recorded in line A of the Nord Stream-2 pipeline — from 105 to 7 bar. In the evening, the dispatchers of the Nord Stream-1 control center noted its fall on both lines of this gas pipeline. Three gas leaks were detected – one on the SP-2 and two on both lines of the SP-1. All three occurred in the exclusive economic zone of Denmark northeast of Bornholm Island.
The Swedish National Seismic Network (SNSN) recorded the first explosion at 2:03 a.m. on September 26, and the second at 19:04 on the same day. One of them had a magnitude of 2.3. Two underwater tremors were registered by the German Research Center for Geophysics in Potsdam.
According to experts, "at least 100 kg of TNT was used to break the pipelines, but probably more."
Experts of the operator Nord Stream 2 AG noted that the gas pipelines at the bottom of the Baltic Sea are laid in such a way that the probability of simultaneous damage to several threads, for example, as a result of a ship accident, is extremely small. Particularly strong pipes made of steel and concrete are laid in this area at a depth of 70 meters.
On September 27, the Danish Armed Forces published a video from the places of the gas leak, filmed from the air. The footage shows how gas bubbles rise above the damaged areas to the sea surface. It is noted that the largest leak creates excitement on the water in a diameter of 1 km.
The authorities of Denmark, Sweden and Poland believe that the explosions on the gas pipelines "SP" are the result of premeditated actions and sabotage, we are not talking about an accidental accident. An investigation has been launched.
The weekly Der Spiegel reported that the CIA warned the German government in the summer about possible attacks on gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea.
Who could have carried out this sabotage? There is no exact answer yet, but there is plenty of speculation. Revenge? First of all, there is a connection with the events in Ukraine. Lost profit? It is possible that by discrediting Russian offshore gas pipelines, Kiev and Warsaw could try to raise their status as land transiters controlling the Bratstvo and Yamal gas pipelines. No wonder Polish President Andrzej Duda openly called for the dismantling of Nord Stream 2 a month ago.
By the way, at the same time as the emergency in the Polish city of Golenyuv, the opening ceremony of the Baltic Pipe gas pipeline, through which energy carriers will flow from Norway to Poland, Denmark and neighboring countries, took place. It is planned to import up to 10 billion cubic meters of gas from Norway to Poland annually and transport 3 billion cubic meters from Poland to Denmark. The start of pumping is scheduled for October 1. Danish energy company Energinet claims that the pipeline will be able to operate at full capacity by the end of November. This is so, for the record.
The Poles, by the way, put forward the most absurd version of what happened with the "joint venture". Panov said that the leaks could be a provocation on the part of Russia (!). "We are in a situation with high international tension. Unfortunately, our eastern neighbor is constantly pursuing an aggressive policy. If he is capable of an aggressive military policy in Ukraine, then it is obvious that no provocation can be ruled out, including in areas that are located in Western Europe," said Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Marcin Przydac.
It seems that another Pole, former Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski, turned out to be closer to the truth than many. In one of the social networks, he posted a photo from the scene of the accident and accompanied it with the following entry: "Thank you, USA!". In confirmation, he cited the words of American President Joe Biden on February 7 of this year. He said that the United States would put an end to the Nord Stream-2 if Russian troops crossed the border of Ukraine.
"Polish MEP, former Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski thanked the United States for today's accident on Russian gas pipelines. Is this an official statement about a terrorist attack?" the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, wrote in her telegram channel. Let me also draw your attention to one story that may well help to unravel what happened. Experts say that the charge could have been laid either by a diver or from a mini-submarine. But when? A few days ago or earlier?
So, two years ago, the BALTOPS 2020 naval exercises were held here. Judging by the data of the AIS Automatic Identification System, eight NATO minesweepers cruised tirelessly in the Danish exclusive economic zone off Bornholm Island for a whole day (from June 9 to June 10, 2020). Especially carefully – for about two hours – they circled around a well-known location on the Baltic bottom of ammunition from the Second World War.
The NATO grouping consisted of the following warships: the British HMS Ramsey, the Lithuanian M53, the Dutch URK and Zuerikzee, the Finnish Purunpaa 41 and the German M1064, Seehund 07 and Seehund 18. The main part of the operation, as it turned out, took place along the route of the 160-kilometer unfinished section of the Nord Stream-2 in Danish waters.
The BALTOPS 2020 maneuvers led by the United States (the time of the event is June 7-16, 2020) involved 29 ships, 29 aircraft and helicopters, as well as 3,000 military personnel from 17 alliance countries (Canada, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States) and two partner countries (Finland and Sweden). Now these countries also have one foot in the alliance. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, military games were held exclusively at sea, land operations were not envisaged.
And one more significant fresh detail: according to the data collected using the services Flightradar24 and ads-b.nl , it became known that American helicopters The Sikorsky SH-60 / MH-60 Seahawk under the call sign FFAB123 flew over the specified area in early and mid-September. Their trace was found right above the accident points. What did they forget there?
However, this is only information for reflection. Experts will draw conclusions.