Sweden finds new leak in Nord Stream gas pipeline
Sweden has found a new leak in a major undersea pipeline carrying Russian natural gas to the EU – making it the fourth discovered this week.
Denmark and Sweden reported gas leaks in the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines earlier this week.
Nato said the incidents were the result of “deliberate, reckless and irresponsible acts of sabotage”.
Russia dismissed suggestions that it had attacked its own pipelines as “predictable and stupid”.
Instead, the Russian foreign ministry said the blasts had occurred in “zones controlled by American intelligence”.
The German ambassador to the UK, Miguel Berger, told the BBC it was clear that a non-state actor could not have been behind the incidents.
Any deliberate attacks would be met with a “united and determined response”, said Nato’s Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg.
The attacks on the pipelines were a classic example from the playbook of a state actor, said the head of Finnish security intelligence service, Antti Pelttari, although he refused to speculate which state it was.
He added that it was “highly likely” that Russia would “turn to the cyber environment over the winter” since Russian diplomats and spies had been expelled from the West after its invasion of Ukraine.
The Swedish coast guard said they had found the fourth leak on Nord Stream 2, very close to a larger leak found earlier on Nord Stream 1.
The EU has repeatedly accused Russia of using gas supplies as a weapon against the West, in retaliation for its support for Ukraine.
It is “very obvious” who is behind the damage, said the head of the International Energy Agency, Fatih Birol, without elaborating.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said he was “extremely concerned” about the leaks, adding that the possibility of a deliberate attack could not be ruled out.
EU leaders have said any attack on the continent’s energy infrastructure would be met with the “strongest possible response”.
Meanwhile, Norway – which is not in the EU – said it would deploy its military to protect oil and gas installations.
Neither Nord Stream 1 or 2 is transporting gas at the moment, although they both contain gas.
The Nord Stream 1 pipeline – which consists of two parallel branches – has not transported any gas since late August when Russia closed it down, saying it needed maintenance.
It stretches 1,200km (745 miles) under the Baltic Sea from the Russian coast near St Petersburg to north-eastern Germany. Its twin pipeline, Nord Stream 2, was halted after Russia invaded Ukraine in February.
Seismologists reported underwater blasts before the leaks emerged. Denmark’s Defence Command has released footage of the leaks which shows bubbles – the largest is 1km in diameter – at the surface of the Baltic Sea.
And Bjorn Lund of Sweden’s National Seismology Centre said there was “no doubt that these were explosions”.
However, Andrei Kortunov of the Russian International Affairs Council – a Moscow-based think tank – said a Russian attack didn’t make sense.
“They always point finger at Russia but I think since it’s the Russian property it would be not very logical for Russia to inflict damage upon it,” he told BBC Radio 4.
“There are other ways to make European lives harder. They can simply stop the gas deliveries without damaging the infrastructure.”
See more here bbc.co.uk
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Jerr
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The UK military gave the Ukrainian Navy six autonomous underwater drones, on August 27th of this year; to identify and remove (eg destroy) mines and other obstacles from Ukrainian waters in the Black Sea to ensure the safety of ships carrying food.
The UK is providing 3 of these drones from current stocks now, and also, providing a 3 week training course on the use of the drones to Ukrainian military personnel.
Although the drones are reported to be designed for 100 meters depth; their actual operational limits were not specified. Is operation of the drones at 200 meters (the approximate depths of the pipelines) possible? Dont know..
What size explosive charge would need to be used to rupture a underwater high pressure pipeline at a distance of a 100 meters. Don’t know.
Three drones and three explosions, just sayin, folks.
Reference
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/aug/27/uk-to-give-ukraine-underwater-mine-clearing-drones-and-training
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Moffin
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Methane is leaking into the atmosphere. Shoot all the wildlife in Africa to restore equilibrium or we’re all gonna die. ARRHHHH. (satire)
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T. C. Clark
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I am not a pipeline expert but I will guess that these pipelines will not be back in operation any time soon…or maybe forever.
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Russ D
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FJB said he would do this!!!
State Dept vows Nord Stream 2 will be a ‘hunk of metal at bottom of the ocean’ if Russia invades Ukraine
Fox News via Yahoo ^ | January 28th, 2022 | Caitlin McFall
The State Department on Thursday unequivocally warned that if Russia invades Ukraine the Nord Stream 2 pipeline will sit unused at the bottom of the ocean.
The controversial pipeline has become the U.S. and NATO’s biggest bargaining chip in its attempts to preserve Kyiv’s sovereignty.
But reporters questioned the diplomatic agency on whether Germany, which would profit from the functioning pipeline, is on the same page when it comes to countering a Russian incursion.
“We continue to have strong, clear communication with our German allies,” Under Secretary for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland said. “If Russia invades Ukraine, one way or another, Nord Stream 2 will not move forward.”
Her comments echoed those made by Secretary of State Antony Blinken earlier this week, but reporters pushed back on the ability to enforce this threat given the pipeline’s physical completion.
“It is not ready to be turned on,” Nuland said. “It has not been tested, it has not been certified, it has not met the regulatory pieces that would allow it to be turned on both on the German side and the EU side.
(Excerpt) Read more at yahoo.com …
https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/4033448/posts
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