Russia considers ‘further steps’ over claim Britain behind Nord Stream pipeline blasts
UK defence officials accused Moscow of ‘peddling false claims of an epic scale’
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Moscow has said it is considering taking “further steps” in response to its allegation that Britain was responsible for an attack on the Nord Stream pipelines – an accusation described by UK authorities as “invented”.
The 760-mile pipeline, which run between Russia to Germany via the Baltic Sea, at a depth as low as 110 metres, was ruptured in September, for which Moscow was initially blamed.
On Saturday, however, Russia’s defence ministry accused Royal Navy personnel of blowing up the key undersea gas pipelines.
London said the claim was false and designed to distract from Russian military failures in Ukraine.
The Kremlin has not provided evidence to support its claims that the Royal Navy was responsible for the ruptures on the pipelines, which have threatened to put the key gas link permanently out of use.
“There is evidence that Britain is involved in sabotage... a terrorist act against vital energy infrastructure,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
“Such actions cannot be put aside. Of course, we will think about further steps. It definitely cannot be left like this.”
Mr Peskov also said no decision had been taken on whether to repair the Russian-owned pipelines, and that the Kremlin was awaiting for an expert assessment of the damage.
Following Moscow’s initial accusation on Saturday, a UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) tweet said: “To detract from their disastrous handling of the illegal invasion of Ukraine, the Russian Ministry of Defence is resorting to peddling false claims of an epic scale.
“This invented story says more about arguments going on inside the Russian government than it does about the West.”
Nord Stream 1 and 2 were the most important supply route for Russian gas to Europe, with a joint annual capacity of 110 billion cubic metres.
In late September, the pipline operators noted a sharp drop in pressure and seismologists detected explosions before four leaks were recorded.
Sweden last week ordered additional investigations to be carried out on the damage.
Authorities in both Sweden and Denmark have concluded the gas leaks were caused by explosions, but have not said who might be responsible.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments