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German lawmaker wants Ukraine to pay for Nord Stream bombing following report that Zelenskyy approved attack
A German lawmaker is asking for reparations in the wake of yet another report indicating that Ukraine was behind the undersea bombings of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines.
Alice Weidel, co-chair of the
Alternative for Germany, tweeted Friday, "The economic damage to our country caused by the demolition of #Nordstream presumably ordered by @Selenskyj — and not #Putin as we were led to believe — should be 'billed' to #Ukraine."
Weidel added, "Any 'aid payments' that burden the German taxpayer should be stopped."
Germany's ruling coalition has already indicated it will be putting an end to new military aid to Ukraine. This planned cessation of funding has, however, not been attributed to the bombing but rather to the need to fulfill other spending priorities.
Extra to seeking possible recompense, there appears to be a sustained desire in Berlin to find and lock up the perpetrators.
The German Federal Court of Justice issued an arrest warrant earlier this summer for a Ukrainian citizen and diving instructor, Volodymyr Z., in connection to the Nord Stream bombing.
The
Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper revealed that the suspect was living in Warsaw, Poland, before going on the run. On the basis of witness statements and speed camera photos, investigators determined that he drove the suspected saboteurs to the 50-foot Bavaria Cruiser used in the attack, then aided them in its execution.
The Wall Street Journal report that appears to have captured Weidel's attention last week indicated that the Sept. 26, 2022, bombings, which NATO appeared ready at the outset to register as an Article 5-triggering attack, were initiated by "a handful of senior Ukrainian military officers and businessmen."
'I am president and I give orders accordingly.'
According to one officer involved in the attack, "The whole thing was born out of a night of heavy boozing and the iron determination of a handful of people who had the guts to risk their lives for their country."
The alleged Ukrainian bombing plot apparently cost $300,000; involved a rental yacht and a six-member crew, including civilian divers; and was verbally approved by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, reported the Journal.
Zelenskyy has long denied Ukraine's involvement in the attacks.
"I am president and I give orders accordingly," Zelenskyy
told Axel Springer in June 2023. "Nothing of the sort has been done by Ukraine. I would never act that way."
"I didn't know anything, 100 percent," added Zelensky. "I said, 'Show us proof. If our military is supposed to have done this, show us proof.'"
Zelenskyy adviser Mykhailo Podolyak similarly denied Ukrainian involvement last year,
stating, "Although I enjoy collecting amusing conspiracy theories about [Ukrainian] government, I have to say: [Ukraine] has nothing to do with the Baltic Sea mishap and has no information about 'pro-[Ukraine] sabotage groups.' What happened to the Nord Stream pipelines? 'They sank,' as they say in RF itself ..."
At the time of the pipeline bombings, Podolyak joined Poland in suggesting the damage was instead the doing of the Russians, reported the BBC.
"Gas leak from NS-1 [Nord Stream 1] is nothing more than a terrorist attack planned by Russia and an act of aggression towards the EU. Russia wants to destabilise the economic situation in Europe and cause pre-winter panic," said Zelenskyy's adviser.
In the wake of the attack, Podolyak stressed that the "best response and security investment are tanks for Ukraine. Especially German ones."
Three people familiar with the bombing plot as well as one of the officers directly involved told the Journal that the CIA learned of the scheme and told Zelenskyy to call it off.
Although Zelenskyy supposedly obliged the American spy agency, his commander in chief running the operation, Valeriy Zaluzhniy — now Ukraine's ambassador to London — reportedly went ahead with the bombing plot utilizing Ukrainian special-operations officers, including Col. Roman Chervinsky.
Following a joint investigation, the Washington Post and Der Spiegel
reported last year that Chervinsky was the "coordinator" of the operation, "managing logistics and support for a six-person team that rented a sailboat under false identities and used deep-sea diving equipment to place explosive charges on the gas pipelines."
The joint report indicated further that Chervinsky ultimately reported to Zaluzhniy, although he contended in a statement, "All speculations about my involvement in the attack on Nord Stream are being spread by Russian propaganda without any basis."
The Journal indicated that a Polish travel agency set up by Ukrainian intelligence years ago to disguise financial transactions was used to rent a yacht called the Andromeda in the German town of Rostock. Masquerading as a group on a pleasure cruise, Chervinsky's crew allegedly set off three explosions using an explosive called HMX, wired to timed-control detonators.
The explosions caused leaks on both the Nord Stream 1 and 2 natural gas pipelines, which both run a distance of over 740 miles from Russia to Lubmin, Germany, under the Baltic Sea, bypassing Ukraine and Poland. The pipelines were not in operation at the time of the leaks, although they nevertheless contained gas under pressure.
'There was no practical sense in such actions for Ukraine.'
According to Carnegie Politika, initial estimates indicated the explosions released 500 million cubic meters of gas, or the equivalent of 1/5000 of annual global CO2 emissions, into the sea.
Extra to causing possible environmental damage, the explosions caused energy prices to surge and Germany to nationalize energy companies. The fallout of the attacks continues to cost Germany, which the Journal indicated pays roughly $1 million daily just to lease floating terminals for liquefied natural gas to partially replace gas flows alternatively carried by the Nord Stream.
The Journal noted that the "four senior Ukrainian defense and security officials who either participated in or had direct knowledge of the plot" who spoke on the record all confirmed that the pipelines were considered to be a legitimate target for Ukraine.
Despite the admissions from these officials, Zaluzhniy and other officials in Kiev continue to downplay and deny their active involvement.
"Ukraine's involvement in the Nord Stream explosions is absolute nonsense. There was no practical sense in such actions for Ukraine," Podolyak
told the AFP Thursday.
While Germany is continuing to investigate the bombings, sources familiar with the investigation told the Journal that it may prove an exercise in futility given that those responsible, cognizant they are wanted, will avoid traveling outside Ukraine — a nation that will not extradite its own citizens.
Even if successful in bringing those responsible to justice, Germany may suffer further embarrassment. It would mean that Germany was attacked by a nation it has materially supported for years.
"An attack of this scale is a sufficient reason to trigger the collective defense clause of NATO, but our critical infrastructure was blown up by a country that we support with massive weapons shipments and billions in cash," a senior German official told the Journal.
Moscow suspects that Germany will ultimately close its investigation without naming those believed to be responsible, reported Reuters.
"We have raised the issue of Germany and other affected countries fulfilling their obligations under the U.N. anti-terrorist conventions," said Oleg Tyapkin, the head of the European department at the Russian foreign ministry. "We have officially made corresponding claims on this matter bilaterally, including to Berlin."
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