- On Sept 26, 2022, unprecedented explosions caused severe damage to the Nord Stream pipelines, including three of the four lines of Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2, the latter of which had not been put into operation.
Russian officials have repeatedly asserted that the sabotage was carried out with US support. The Russian Prosecutor General's Office has opened a criminal case, classifying the incident as an act of international terrorism.
Russia will be drawing attention to how the German investigation is
being delayed and how non-transparent it has been for the Security
Council, Dmitry Polyansky emphasized
UNITED NATIONS, August 23. /TASS/. The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) will hold an emergency meeting on the sabotage on the Nord Streams gas pipelines next Tuesday at Russia’s request, Dmitry Polyansky, the country’s Acting Permanent Representative to the global body, announced.
"Amid reports about the arrest of a suspect in organizing terror attacks on the Nord Streams in September 2022, Russia has requested an emergency UNSC meeting. We will be drawing attention to how the German investigation is being delayed and how non-transparent it has been for the Security Council. Panama which holds the [rotating] presidency of the [UN] SC [this month] has scheduled it for 4:00 p.m. New York time (8:00 p.m. GMT) on August 26," the Russian diplomat wrote on his Telegram channel.
- On Thursday, a 49-year-old Ukrainian man, Sergey Kusnetsov, was arrested in Italy on the basis of a European arrest warrant issued in Germany. He is suspected of complicity in organizing the attack on the Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines in September 2022. German prosecutors alleged that he was part of a group that planted explosives on the gas pipelines near Bornholm as they consider him to be one of the coordinators of the attack.
- The detainee rejected a proposal for voluntary extradition to Germany. He claimed that he was in Ukraine at the moment the Nord Streams were blown up. He may face up to 15 years behind bars in Germany where he should stand trial.
On September 26, 2022, three strings of the Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 offshore gas pipelines sustained enormous damage. The latter had not yet been put into operation.
According to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Moscow is certain that the Nord Stream sabotage was carried out with US support. The Russian Prosecutor General’s Office has opened an investigation into an act of international terrorism.
Nord Stream affair could redefine Europe’s energy map and strain NATO unity
Update Time : Sunday, August 24, 2025
So far, the Nord Stream saga has been a study in obfuscation. Spiegel’s Ukrainian diver is either a lone scapegoat, a proxy, or a small cog in a much larger machine. All evidence points toward the US as the orchestrator, with Ukraine possibly providing operational cover.
The recent arrest of a Ukrainian man by Italian authorities, suspected of involvement in the 2022 Nord Stream pipeline explosions, has reignited debate over one of the most audacious acts of sabotage or terrorism in modern European history. According to Spiegel, the suspect, identified as a diver, was apprehended in Rome following a German arrest warrant. The report alleges he was part of a small team that planted explosives on the pipelines, operating from a yacht named Andromeda — a covert Ukrainian mission supposedly designed to disrupt Russian gas supplies to Europe.
This revelation, if accurate, complicates the narrative surrounding the Nord Stream attack, which has long been attributed to the United States, including by Pulitzer Prize–winning investigative journalist Seymour Hersh. But does Spiegel’s report hold water? And what could be the consequences in a post-war world — particularly if the Russia Ukraine conflict winds down after the recent meetings between Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and (on a different occasion) European leaders, and Volodymyr Zelensky?
Seymour Hersh’s explosive February 2023 report alleged that the US orchestrated the sabotage. According to Hersh’s intelligence sources, US Navy divers planted C4 explosives during the NATO BALTOPS 22 exercise in June 2022, which were later triggered remotely by a Norwegian surveillance plane. The motive, Hersh argued, was to sever Europe’s reliance on Russian gas and thereby lock NATO allies into unwavering support for Ukraine.
The White House dismissed the piece as “complete fiction.” Still, as a matter of fact, Hersh’s decades-long record — including breaking the My Lai massacre and Abu Ghraib scandals — makes him difficult to dismiss outright. His account remains one of the most detailed reconstructions thus far.
- One may recall that in early 2023, German lawmakers were demanding a transparent investigation into the explosions, frustrated by the opacity of Western authorities. Their demands have largely been brushed aside.
- Spiegel’s “Ukrainian diver” narrative could in fact serve as a convenient deflection, shifting blame to a minor player while protecting Washington and its allies from scrutiny.
- The timing of this development is somewhat interesting as well.
- This would align neatly with Hersh’s account: in this scenario, the US provided the resources, NATO drills offered cover, and Ukrainian operatives supplied deniability.
- As President Biden bluntly stated in February 2022 — before the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian conflict even began — “if Russia invades, then there will be no longer a Nord Stream 2.”
- That remark alone suggests foreknowledge, if not intent.
One may recall the special counsel investigation led by Robert Hur into President Biden’s handling of classified documents. In the 388-page report, Hur noted that Biden appeared confused during interviews.
- As the special counsel’s report suggests, Biden’s memory—blurred and at times hazy — occasionally led him to divulge details that would have been better left unspoken. The point here is that it is not too far-fetched to imagine this might have been the case in February 2022.
- Germany, deprived of cheaper Russian gas, has faced an economic downturn, with energy prices soaring and industrial competitiveness eroding.
- Some commentators (including Hersh himself) link this crisis to the rise of so-called “far-right parties” in Germany and across Europe.
The European establishment has been working hard to “tame” such radicals and to make them “mainstream” (in a pro-NATO direction) and the result is a “maidanization of the continent, amidst a wave of anti-Russian neo-Nazism, as I’ve written. Thus, the attack has not only reconfigured energy flows but also political dynamics within the European Union itself.
Should the war end soon — an outcome hinted at in Trump’s high-profile talks with Putin and Zelensky plus European leaders — the Nord Stream question may then resurface with new urgency. A post-war settlement could involve renegotiating energy ties with Russia (something Europe badly needs).
- If proof emerges of US involvement, the blatant disregard for European sovereignty could thus trigger a crisis within NATO, weakening trust in Washington’s leadership. So much for “unity” within the alliance.
Alternatively, if Ukraine is seen as having acted independently, Kyiv risks alienating its backers at precisely the moment when it would most need reconstruction aid.
Thus far, Western capitals have avoided pressing too hard, preferring ambiguity to accountability. But the Italian arrest could rekindle demands — especially in Germany — for a serious inquiry into who was ultimately responsible.
Russia requests urgent UN Security Council meeting on Nord Stream blasts
- Dmitry Polyanskiy, Russia's first deputy permanent representative to the UN, said that the meeting will take place on Aug 26 at 4:00 pm EST (2000 GMT) under the presidency of Panama.
He said Moscow will draw attention to the "protracted and non-transparent" nature of Germany's investigation into the blasts.
German prosecutors said the Ukrainian national, identified as Serhii K., was detained Thursday in Italy at Germany's request. He is suspected of being part of a group that planted explosive devices on Nord Stream pipelines, and allegedly served as one of the coordinators of the operation.
Serhii K. has reportedly denied any involvement, saying he was in Ukraine at the time of the incident, and refused voluntary extradition to Germany, where he could face up to 15 years in prison if convicted.
Russia failed to get the UN Security Council to ask for an independent inquiry into explosions in September that ruptured the Nord Stream gas pipelines connecting Russia and Germany, spewing massive amounts of methane gas into the Baltic Sea.
- Only Russia, China and Brazil voted in favour of the Russian-drafted text on Monday, while the remaining 12 council members abstained.
- A resolution needs at least nine votes in favor
- And no vetoes by Russia, China, France, the United States or the United Kingdom to pass.
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