According to The Washington Post, the US was told that the Ukrainian military was planning to blow up the Nord Stream pipelines months before mysterious explosions destroyed Russia’s pipeline for gas sales to Europe.
The information, quoted in a leaked US intelligence report, came from a friendly European intelligence agency, the Post reported while refusing to name the country.
The detailed intelligence, which the US received three months before the explosions, matches some pieces of evidence unearthed by the obscure probes into the attack on Europe’s energy infrastructure.
The Post cited an intelligence document leaked by US Air National Guard member Jack Texeira on the social media platform Discord. The US National Security Council and the CIA declined to comment. Ukrainian officials have long denied any involvement in an attack on the pipeline.
The underwater explosions in late September left only three of the four pipelines intact, largely severing Russia’s gas infrastructure to Europe.
The ensuing finger-pointing and inconclusive investigations have spawned several conspiracy theories, with reports alternately blaming Russia, the US and Ukrainian saboteurs.
Despite European intelligence, the US initially appeared to blame Russia for destroying its own expensive pipeline as a means of putting pressure on Europe ahead of winter. At the time of the explosions, Russia had already shut down Nord Stream 1 in response to sanctions, and Nord Stream 2 had yet to become operational.
Evidence has emerged to support this initial theory. Secret Russian naval maneuvers have been discovered in the Baltic Sea near the site of the explosions; was a Russian naval ship with a small submarine photographed in the area by the Danish Navy.
German researchers have investigated an alternative theory. In January, they searched a yacht called the Andromeda chartered in September 2022 in Rostock, a German port city, and may have participated in the attack. Explosive remains were found in the hunting cabin. German investigators and journalists have linked a person involved in the rental of the yacht with the Ukrainian army.
The details of their investigation are in some ways similar to those quoted by the Post, which relate to a plan to rent a boat in Germany. However, the intelligence report mentioned an intent to use a submersible vehicle, a method not previously associated with the Andromeda.
According to the Post, details of the plot were withheld from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to allow the president to deny knowledge of an incident with dire international consequences.
Nord Stream was a joint investment of Russia’s Gazprom, which held a 51 percent stake, while European partners invested billions despite Washington’s opposition to the project.
The intelligence letter appears to be based on a single source in the Ukrainian government, raising doubts among the US intelligence community. Despite the reservations, European intelligence shared its findings with the German government, which notified lawmakers months before the explosions.
Additional reporting by Felicia Schwartz and James Politi in Washington
