A Russian vessel was near the explosion of the Nord Stream pipeline in the Baltic Sea, Information.dk reports, citing the Danish Defence Command.
“The Russian special vessel SS-750 was near the Nord Stream pipes four days before the pipes were blown up on 26 September last year. The special vessel is designed to carry out operations under the sea and has a mini submarine of the AS-26 Priz type on board,” reporters say.
The Defence Command confirms that 26 photos of the Russian vessel were taken from a Danish patrol boat that was in the area east of Bornholm on 22 September 2022. The agency refuses to provide access to the photos of the Russian special vessel, as the photos are “of an intelligence nature” and “are part of the intelligence work”.
On 26 September, two separate gas leaks were detected in Nord Stream 1 in Denmark’s exclusive economic zone northeast of Bornholm Island. Another rupture was recorded later in Nord Stream 2 southeast of the island. Swedish and Danish seismological stations identified powerful underwater explosions in the same area.
Der Tagesspiegel reported that the pipelines could have been damaged in a deliberate attack that was either masterminded by Ukraine or Russia.
The New York Times cited US officials to claim that US intelligence community data points to the fact that a “pro-Ukrainian group” was behind the Nord Stream attack. At the same time, The Washington Post stressed that there had been no evidence proving that the explosions were linked to any particular country.
