NATO says it sees “sabotage” on Nord Stream pipelines; Putin says case is ‘act of international terrorism’
European leaders exchanged accusations about recent leaks in the Nord Stream pipelines. The infrastructure goes from Russia to Europe via the Baltic Sea, one of those responsible for the energy supply of European countries.
Even without evidence and no conclusion on what is causing the leaks in the gas pipelines, authorities raise the possibility of “sabotage”.
On Thursday (29.Sep.2022), the Secretary General of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), Jens Stoltenberg, spoke, without naming names, of attacks on the infrastructure of the gas pipeline and stated that the alliance “united and determined response”.
EU countries (European Union) also talk about the possibility of sabotage. It is not yet known whether or not the incidents were intentionally caused and by whom.
Suspicion has fallen on Russia because, in addition to managing the structure, it has recently reduced gas deliveries to the European mainland in response to sanctions over the war in Ukraine.
Russia denies deliberate action. In response, the Kremlin said the charges are “stupid” and indicated US interests to promote the incident.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said the leaks were “unprecedented sabotage” and “an act of international terrorism”. Russian intelligence chief Sergey Naryshkin said the West would be “covering up” the authors.
According to one communiqué from the Kremlin, Russia will take the issue of gas pipelines to the UN Security Council (United Nations). The country speaks of a “urgent discussion”.
Nord Stream pipelines have been the focus of a growing energy war between Russia and European countries. The clash has driven up gas prices and sparked a search for alternative supplies.
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