New intelligence verified by officials in the United States suggests that a pro-Ukrainian group attacked the Nord Stream gas pipelines last September, according to the New York Times.
US officials said they had no evidence that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy or other Ukrainian government officials were involved in the pipeline bombing, the Times reported on Tuesday.
The explosions on the pipelines connecting Russia and Germany occurred on September 26 in the exclusive economic zones of Sweden and Denmark. Both countries have concluded the blasts were premeditated but have not said who might be responsible.
The US and NATO have called the pipeline attacks an “act of sabotage,” while Moscow blames the West. Neither side presented any evidence.
The new intelligence information reviewed by US officials suggested the perpetrators behind the sabotage were “opponents of President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia,” the Times reported, but did not name the group’s members or who organized and paid for the operation needed experienced divers and explosives experts.
US officials, quoted by the Times, believed those involved were likely Ukrainian or Russian nationals and that none were American or British.
The Times said officials were divided on how much weight to give the new information, but said intelligence agencies had increased their optimism that US spy services and their partners could find more information in Europe, allowing them to do so would, to draw a firm conclusion the perpetrators.
“Absolutely not involved”
Denmark, Germany and Sweden, which have taken the lead in investigating the attack, said last month their investigations were ongoing.
The US and UK said Tuesday they were awaiting those results.
“We must allow these investigations to be completed and only then should we consider what follow-up action may or may not be appropriate,” White House spokesman John Kirby said.
Germany said on Tuesday it had taken note of the Times report but its own investigation had not yet produced any results. Meanwhile, a senior adviser to Zelenskyi, Mykhailo Podolyak, said Kiev was “absolutely not involved in the blasts” and had no information about what happened.
The Times said any suggestion of Ukrainian involvement, whether direct or indirect, could disrupt the thorny relationship between Ukraine and Germany and “weaken support in a German public that has swallowed high energy prices in the name of solidarity.”
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson declined to comment on the report during a press conference in Stockholm.
“A preliminary investigation is ongoing in Sweden, so I do not intend to comment on these reports,” Kristersson told reporters late Tuesday.
The New York Times report came as German broadcaster ARD and newspaper Zeit reported uncredited on Tuesday that German authorities had been able to identify the boat used in the sabotage operation.
German media reported that a group of five men and a woman with fake passports had rented a yacht from a Poland-based company owned by Ukrainian citizens. They said the nationality of the perpetrators was unclear.
According to ARD and Zeit, investigators found traces of explosives on the yacht that the group took from Rostock, Germany on September 6. They also reported that intelligence services indicated that a pro-Ukrainian group could be behind the attack, but German authorities have yet to find any evidence.
The lack of a solid suspect meant international intelligence officials hadn’t ruled out the possibility of a “false flag” operation to link the attack to Ukraine, according to German media.
“Monstrous Crime”
In Moscow, a Kremlin spokesman said media reports of the Nord Stream attacks were a coordinated effort to divert attention and called for an urgent, transparent investigation.
“Obviously the perpetrators of the attack want to distract. Obviously, this is a coordinated filling in the media,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the state news agency RIA.
“How can American officials assume anything without investigation?”
Peskov added: “We are still not allowed to participate in the investigation. Just a few days ago, we received relevant information from the Danes and Swedes.
“It’s not just weird. It smells like a monstrous crime.”
Russia submitted a draft resolution to the United Nations Security Council last month that, if passed, would call on UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to launch an international, independent investigation into the attack and those responsible.
Russia’s Deputy Ambassador to the UN Dmitry Polyanskiy said Tuesday’s media reports made Russia’s move in the Security Council “very timely” and told Portal that “a vote will definitely take place” on the resolution by the end of March.
Separately, veteran US investigative journalist Seymour Hersh reported in February that the US was behind the operation to bomb the Nord Stream pipelines and that Norway was helping.
The White House condemned Hersh’s report, which cited an unnamed source, as “complete fiction.”