Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – The Nord Stream gas pipeline, which carries natural gas from Russia to Germany via the Baltic Sea, was reportedly blown up by a small Ukrainian sabotage team in an operation initially approved by the President Volodymyr Zelensky, but was later suspended.
According to reports from Wall Street Journal (WSJ), even though the plan was cancelled, the work was still done,
The Nord Stream gas pipeline, which includes Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2, was damaged by an explosion in September 2022, seven months after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. This incident stopped the flow of gas and worsened the energy crisis in Europe.
At first, many believed that Russia was behind the explosion. Then, suggestions emerged that the CIA might be involved.
Last year, the New York Times reported that US officials had seen information indicating that an “anti-Ukrainian group” was responsible for the explosion. Last month, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban called the bombing “an act of terrorism carried out on American orders.”
according to WSJthis sabotage operation involved a small sailing boat and a crew of six, a mix of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians with related skills. The operation was privately funded but led by an active military general, who reported to Ukraine’s then supreme leader, Valerii Zaluzhnyi.
Zelensky initially agreed to the plan, but then backtracked after the CIA found out about the plan and asked Kyiv to cancel it, according to the sources WSJ.
Nevertheless, Zaluzhnyi continued with the mission, according to the report. Zaluzhnyi, who is now UK ambassador in Ukraine, told WSJ that he knew nothing about the work and called the allegations “merely provocative”.
Ukraine has always denied involvement in the explosion, and on Thursday (15/8/2024), a spokesman for Zelensky again accused Russia of the person who did the sabotage.
“Such activities could only be carried out with extensive technical and financial resources… Reuters.
Other Ukrainian groups also denied government involvement. A senior official from the SBU, the security service of Ukraine, said WSJ that Zelensky “did not agree to implement such measures on the territory of third countries and did not issue any corresponding orders.”
Meanwhile, German police and prosecutors are reportedly continuing an investigation that now points to senior Ukrainian military officials, who may be embarrassed by Berlin, as it involves acts of sabotage by allies against critical infrastructure.
Germany has issued an arrest warrant for the accused.
The perpetrator is said to be a Ukrainian diving instructor named Volodymyr Z. Investigators believe that Volodymyr Z is a member of the team that in September 2022 planted an explosive device in a pipeline that carried natural gas from Russia to Germany.
“Volodymyr Z was last known to be living in Poland,” according to the newspaper report Suddeutsche Zeitung and die Hour as well as public broadcasters HIGHsaid unnamed sources.
The Polish prosecutor’s office confirmed that they have obtained an arrest warrant from Germany for a Ukrainian man suspected in the Nord Stream attacks by the name of ‘Volodymyr Z’. It is known that German law does not allow the last name of the suspect to be published.
They said they got the warrant in June, but the suspect left for Ukraine last month. They also said that authorities did not stop him from leaving because adequate information had not reached the country’s border guards.
“German investigations have identified another man and woman who look like Volodymyr Z are also Ukrainian diving instructors. However, no arrest warrants have been issued for them at this time,” the German media report said.
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