Sweden: Nord Stream's first checks "reinforce suspicions of sabotage"
The Swedish Prosecution announced today, Thursday, that the first investigations carried out by the authorities this week at the site of the leak on the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea "reinforce the suspicions of sabotage" with "explosions" that caused "serious damage".
"We can see that explosions occurred near Nord Stream 1 and 2 in the Swedish exclusive economic zone, causing significant damage to gas pipelines," the Swedish special prosecutor in charge of the investigation said in a statement.
"Verifications at the site of the accident have reinforced the suspicion of serious acts of sabotage. (evidence) has been seized at the site and will be examined," Mats Ljungqvist added.
Sweden, which struck Monday for investigation purposes, cordoned off several kilometers to prevent access to the site, and announced the lifting of restrictions.
No details were provided on how the underwater checks would be conducted.
On the Swedish side, the intelligence service took the lead in the investigation, in coordination with the Special Prosecutor and the various authorities.
After two explosions of unknown origin on September 26, the massive leaks of methane stopped Monday at Nord Stream 1. A small leak was still going on Thursday morning in Nord Stream 2, according to the Swedish Coast Guard.
Soon, many countries saw this as an act of sabotage.
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