8th June, 2023
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has denied his government’s involvement in the sabotage of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines.
“I am the president and I give orders accordingly. Nothing of the sort has been done by Ukraine. I would never act that way,” Zelensky said, asking for proof of Ukrainian involvement.
His remarks were made in response to an article which appeared on Tuesday in the Washington Post.
The Washington Post had reported that the U.S. government learned from a European intelligence agency of a secret plan by Ukraine’s military.
That the Ukraine’s military planned to attack the pipelines using divers who reported directly to the commander-in-chief of the armed forces three months before the September 2022 explosions.
The Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 were both badly damaged by the explosions which blasted a total of four holes in the pipelines near the Danish island of Bornholm.
The undersea pipelines carried natural gas from Russia to Germany.
Although the U.S. government initially could not independently confirm the reports, it still shared the information with the intelligence services of Germany and other countries, according to the Washington Post.
Members of Germany’s lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, were also subsequently informed.
The explosions are widely believed to have been an act of sabotage, although it remains unclear who carried out the attack.
Germany, Sweden and Denmark are each conducting investigations.
dpa/NAN