British authorities spoke about the causes of the state of emergency at Nord Stream

MOSCOW, 29 Sep — PRIME. British authorities believe that the Nord Stream incidents could have occurred due to an attack using underwater explosive devices that were remotely activated, Sky News reported, citing a source in the British Ministry of Defense.

According to the source, the mines could have been lowered to the seabed on a long chain, thrown overboard from a boat, or placed next to gas pipelines using an underwater drone. The source stated that this could have happened months or years ago.

The source also dismissed speculation that a “Russian submarine” could have planted explosives, as the Baltic Sea is not very deep, making it difficult to carry out “such a submarine mission” without detection.

On Monday, September 26, incidents occurred simultaneously on two Russian export gas pipelines to Europe – two gas leaks were discovered at Nord Stream and one at Nord Stream 2 near Bornholm Island. Germany, Denmark and Sweden do not rule out targeted sabotage.

The Russian side officially requested information from Denmark about the emergency at Nord Stream as soon as the incident became known. The Danish authorities notified the Russian Federation about the explosions at the site of the gas leak. The operator of Nord Stream, Nord Stream AG, reported that the state of emergency on gas pipelines was unprecedented, and it was impossible to estimate the timing of repairs.

The work of Nord Stream has been suspended since the end of August due to problems with the repair of Siemens turbines caused by Western sanctions. However, the pipeline remained filled with gas. Nord Stream 2, completed in 2021 but never put into operation, has also already been filled with gas.