Britain Denies Russian Military's Claim That U.K. Navy Blew Up Nord Stream Pipelines
According to RFE/RL, Britain on October 29 denied a Russian Defense Ministry claim that British Navy personnel blew up the Nord Stream gas pipelines last month, saying the accusation is the latest "invented story” put out by Moscow.
Britain's Defense Ministry said in a statement that Russia’s accusation was designed to “detract from their disastrous handling of the illegal invasion of Ukraine.”
The Russian Defense Ministry “is resorting to peddling false claims of an epic scale," the statement added. "This invented story, says more about the arguments going on inside the Russian Government than it does about the west."
Russia has previously said the leaks appeared to be the result of state-sponsored "terrorism" and blamed the West for the explosions in September, which ruptured the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines on the bed of the Baltic Sea built to deliver Russian natural gas to Germany.
Sweden and Denmark have both concluded that four leaks on Nord Stream 1 and 2 were caused by explosions but have not said who might be responsible. NATO and several European countries suspect Russia carried out the sabotage.
The Kremlin has repeatedly said allegations of Russian responsibility for the damage were "stupid," and Russian officials have pointed the finger at Washington, saying it had a motive as it wants to sell more liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Europe. The United States has denied involvement.
The Russian Defense Ministry’s statement said that “representatives of a unit of the British Navy took part in the planning, provision, and implementation of a terrorist attack in the Baltic Sea on September 26 this year -- blowing up the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines."
Russia did not give evidence for its claim but described the saboteurs as “British specialists,” saying they belonged to the same unit that directed Ukrainian drone attacks on October 29 on ships of Russia's Black Sea Fleet in Crimea.
The Russian Army accused Ukraine of conducting the "massive" drone attack earlier on October 29. It said the ships that were affected are involved in guaranteeing the safety of grain shipments from three Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea under an international deal reached in July.
