Nord stream attack traced back to 2014, doubts on Ukrainian link
The attack on the three strands of the Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 pipelines was planned as early as 2014, according to "Welt am Sonntag," which cites data from German intelligence services. Investigators, however, doubt the credibility of the theory that a "Ukrainian group" was responsible for the attacks.
4:23 PM EDT, July 6, 2024
Gerhard Schindler, who led German intelligence from 2011 to 2016, stated that evidence pointing to the involvement of a "Ukrainian group" in the September 2022 attacks does not necessarily implicate Ukraine in the explosions.
Was the attack on Nord Stream planned as early as 2014?
In the summer of 2023, Polish intelligence provided Germany with information about individuals who might be linked to the attack and who allegedly "have connections to Moscow." These individuals included members of the Andromeda yacht crew who held Russian citizenship.
In 2023, the media, citing investigators, reported that the perpetrators of the explosion rented the Andromeda yacht using forged documents and installed explosive devices on the pipelines with deep-sea equipment. Six people were reportedly on board.
According to "Welt am Sonntag," a week before the explosions, the yacht was in Kołobrzeg. It was reported that the Polish side has not yet handed over to German investigators the video recordings made during the yacht inspection. The possible presence of American and Polish agents in the footage might explain the delay.
Additional details concern the timing of the plan for the NS and NS II attacks. These plans in Ukraine reportedly emerged before Russia annexed Crimea in 2014. However, whether they are connected to the events of fall 2022 remains unknown.
The explosions of Nord Stream 1 and the unfinished Nord Stream 2 occurred on September 26, 2022, in the Baltic Sea. Denmark and Sweden, which conducted investigations into the matter, have closed their proceedings. German law enforcement continues its investigation.
