5 males and a girl used a yacht employed by a Ukrainian-owned firm in Poland to hold out the assault on the night time of September 26, 2022, German media reported.
(Reuters Archive)
Germany’s defence minister has voiced warning over media reviews {that a} pro-Ukraine group was concerned in blowing up the Nord Stream gasoline pipelines within the Baltic Sea final yr.
German every day newspaper Die Zeit and public broadcasters ARD and SWR reported on Tuesday that investigators had been in a position to largely reconstruct how the pipelines from Russia to Germany had been sabotaged on the night time of September 26, 2022.
German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius mentioned he learn the information reviews “with nice curiosity” however warned towards drawing hasty conclusions.
“We have to clearly differentiate whether or not it was a Ukrainian group that acted on the orders of Ukraine or (…) with out the federal government’s information,” he advised reporters in Stockholm.
Talking on the sidelines of a European Union defence ministers assembly, Pistorius mentioned some consultants additionally had raised the opportunity of a so-called false flag operation by a bunch pretending to be Ukrainian.
“It might not be the primary time within the historical past of such occasions,” the German minister mentioned. “As such, I am refraining from drawing untimely conclusions.”
READ MORE: Investigators discover ‘traces of explosives’ at Nord Stream blast web site
⚡️#BREAKING New intelligence reviewed by U.S. officers suggests {that a} pro-Ukrainian group carried out the assault on the Nord Stream pipelines final yr — NYT
Professional Ukrainian group: CIA/MI6 pic.twitter.com/JKD8rmtU3J
— Warfare Monitor (@WarMonitors) March 7, 2023
Requested whether or not the reviews may undermine Western help for Ukraine, Pistorius mentioned he most well-liked to reply as soon as he had dependable data. “The rest is hypothetical,” he added.
The New York Instances additionally reported Tuesday that US officers reviewed intelligence that prompt a pro-Ukrainian group was behind the blasts. The Ukrainian authorities has denied involvement.
Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov rejected options that the assault may need been ordered by Kiev. “It’s like a praise for our particular forces, however this isn’t our exercise,” he advised reporters in Stockholm.
White Home Nationwide Safety Council spokesman John Kirby declined Tuesday to touch upon the New York Instances report, noting that investigations by Denmark, Germany, and Sweden stay energetic.
“We have to let these investigations conclude,” Kirby mentioned. “And solely then ought to we be taking a look at what observe on actions may or will not be acceptable.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his officers have accused the US of staging the pipeline explosions, which they described as a “terror assault”.
The Nord Stream 1 and a couple of pipelines have lengthy between a goal of criticism by the USA and a few of its allies, who warned that they posed a threat to Europe’s power safety by rising dependence on Russian gasoline.
READ MORE: Sabotage can’t be dominated out as cause for Nord Stream leaks: Kremlin
Supply: TRTWorld and businesses