German Interior Minister Nancy Wieser announced today, Saturday, that Berlin will form a joint international unit with Denmark and Sweden to investigate what appears to be a “sabotage” operation targeting the Nord Stream gas pipelines linking Europe and Russia.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Friday that his country would “support a joint investigation” into the incident with Denmark and Sweden, during a video call with his counterparts in the two countries.
The weekly Bild am Sonntag reported that it had agreed with the two countries’ interior ministers that a “joint international investigation team operating within the framework of European Union law” and comprising staff from the three countries would handle the investigations.
She was quoted as saying that “all indications point to an act of sabotage against the two Nord Stream pipelines.”
She added that the team will bring with it experience gained from “the navy, the police and the intelligence services.”
While the authorities stated that they are on “alert” to protect German energy-related infrastructure, they said that “there are no indications of a concrete threat to German sites yet.”
Weser newspaper, “Süddeutsche Zeitung”, reported on Friday that German police were patrolling the North and Baltic Seas “with all available forces” after the explosions, in cooperation with neighboring countries.
The Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines, which have been shut down since late August, were essential to deliver natural gas directly from Russia to Germany.
The source of the explosions is still a mystery, while Washington and Moscow have denied responsibility for them.
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