European ministers warn against ‘jumping to conclusions’ over Nord Stream pipeline attack report

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius warned on Wednesday against jumping to conclusions about who was responsible for blowing up the Nord Stream pipeline, saying the attack could also be a “false flag” operation to blame Ukraine.

Pistorius spoke after a New York Times report, citing intelligence reviewed by US officials, said a pro-Ukraine group may have been behind the blasts that became a flashpoint between the West and Russia after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year.

The report, while not indicating official Ukrainian involvement, comes at a time when Kyiv is asking its Western allies to increase supplies of advanced weapons to repel Russian forces as the war enters its second year.

An investigation is still underway into what caused the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines, which supply Russian energy to Europe, to rupture and spew bubbles of natural gas into the Baltic Sea. After the September 26 discovery, Western countries believed the explosion was intentional but had not yet determined who was behind it.

At the same summit in Stockholm, Ukraine’s Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said the media reports were “rather strange” and had “nothing to do” with the Ukrainian government.

“It’s like a compliment to our special forces,” he joked. “But this is not our activity.”

Reznikov said he was not worried about the prospect of media reports reducing support for Ukraine. Pistorius dismissed similar questions about Western support as “hypothetical.”

Russia reiterated its call for a UN-led investigation

Russia, which has previously blamed the West, seized on the news on Wednesday to demand a transparent investigation that it also wants to take part in.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov suggested the media reports were a coordinated bid to divert attention and questioned how US officials could assume anything about the attack without an investigation.

“The least that the Nord Stream shareholder countries and the United Nations should do is an important and transparent investigation with the participation of all those who can shed light,” Peskov said.

Russia last month presented a draft UN Security Council resolution that – if adopted – would call on Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to establish an international independent investigation into the attack.

The New York Times said there was no evidence that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy or other Ukrainian government officials had a role in the attack.

The German report gives details of the crew, the charter of the ship

A US intelligence review suggested those behind the attack were against Russian President Vladimir Putin “but did not identify the members of the group, or who directed or paid for the operation,” the New York Times wrote.

“Officials who have seen the intelligence say they believe the saboteurs are most likely Ukrainian or Russian nationals, or some combination of the two. US officials said no American or British citizens were involved,” according to a New York Times report.

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Separate reports by German broadcaster ARD and newspaper Zeit on Tuesday said German authorities were able to identify the vessel used in the sabotage operation. It said a group of five men and one woman, using fake passports, chartered a yacht from a Poland-based company owned by Ukrainian citizens, but the nationality of the perpetrators was not clear.

“We have to clearly distinguish whether it is a Ukrainian group, what is happening on Ukrainian orders, or a pro-Ukrainian group. [acting] without the knowledge of the government. But I warn you not to jump to conclusions,” Pistorius said.

Pistorius said earlier that the possibility is “equally high” that it could be a “false flag operation staged to blame Ukraine.”

Citing German federal prosecutors, broadcaster ntv said that ​​German investigators had raided a ship in January suspected of involvement but had no reliable information about the perpetrators or motives.

Investigators found traces of explosives on the yacht, which the group took from Rostock, Germany, on September 6, according to ARD and Zeit. He also reported that intelligence indicated that a pro-Ukrainian group could be behind the attack, but that German authorities had not found any evidence.

Reuters could not independently verify the information.