The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, commented this Wednesday that all available information indicates that the leaks in the Nord Stream submarine gas pipelines are the result of sabotage, and has warned of a “forceful” response by the Union European (EU).
In a statement released this morning in Brussels, the EU High Representative for Foreign Policy stresses that the EU bloc “is deeply concerned about the damage caused to the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines, which have resulted in leaks in the international waters of the Baltic Sea”. ” .
“Safety and environmental concerns are of the highest priority. These incidents are not a coincidence and they affect us all”, he continues, noting that “all available information indicates that these leaks are the result of a deliberate act”.
“We will support any investigation that aims to obtain full clarity on what happened and why, and we will take further steps to increase our resilience in terms of energy security,” says the head of the European diplomatic corps.
Finally, the High Representative warns that “any deliberate interruption of the European energy infrastructure is totally unacceptable and will deserve a forceful and united response”.
On Tuesday, the president of the European Commission, Ursula Von der Leyen, had already warned that if the three leaks detected in the Nord Stream submarine gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea were a “sabotage action”, there would be “a strong response”. .
“It is now paramount to investigate the incidents, to get full clarity on the events and why. Any deliberate disruption of active European energy infrastructure is unacceptable and will lead to the strongest possible response,” Von der Leyen said.
The President of the European Commission made these statements after speaking by telephone with the Prime Minister of Denmark, Mette Frederiksen, whose Government, like that of Sweden, indicated that the leaks identified in the gas pipelines that connect Russia with Germany are the consequence of “acts deliberate.”
“The authorities’ clear assessment is that this is an intentional act and not an accident,” Frederiksen told a news conference.
Also the Swedish Prime Minister, Magdalena Andersson, said that “probably” what happened was due to “sabotage”.
Neither of the two rulers wanted to speculate on the possible motive or perpetrator and both highlighted the seriousness of the event, although it occurred near but outside their territory, and Von der Leyen did not point to any alleged perpetrator either.
NATO, Russia, the United States and Germany have also avoided speculation until they have more information about it.
A Swedish seismic institute announced that Sweden had detected two underwater explosions, “probably due to detonations”, near where leaks were detected in pipelines carrying Russian gas to Europe.
Danish and Swedish authorities have detected leaks in the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which Russia closed in early September, and in the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which was never put into operation due to lack of authorization from Germany after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. February 24th.
Despite not being operational, the two gas pipelines operated by a consortium of the Russian giant Gazprom were full of gas.
Ukraine on Tuesday accused Russia of responsibility for the gas pipeline leak, denouncing a “terrorist attack” against the European Union.
“The large-scale gas leak from Nord Stream 1 is nothing more than a terrorist attack planned by Russia and an act of aggression against the European Union,” Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podoliak said on Twitter, quoted by the French news agency. AFP.
Source: TSF
