‘Pro-Ukraine group’ struck Putin pipelines: intel

New intelligence seen by US officials suggests a pro-Ukraine group attacked the Nord Stream 2 pipelines that transported natural gas from Russia to Western Europe, The New York Times reported Tuesday.

US officials told the paper there is no evidence Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky or his top aides were involved or that the Ukrainian government otherwise directed those who attacked the pipelines that run under the Baltic Sea.

The US and NATO initially called the September 2022 attack an act of sabotage, discounting a natural disaster such as an earthquake.

Speculation over who was to blame ranged from Ukraine to Russia to Britain to the United States.

Ukraine, which was invaded by Russia on Feb. 24, 2022, immediately came under suspicion because it had opposed the project for years, considering it a national security threat because it would allow Russia to continue selling gas in Europe while preventing Kyiv from collecting lucrative transfer fees.

A review of the new intelligence, the Times said, sheds little light on who carried out the attack, who was associated with it or who financed it.

The intel does suggest, however, that the culprits opposed Russian President Vladimir Putin and were likely Ukrainian or Russian nationals, or a combination of the two.

The officials told the outlet that no Americans or Brits were involved in the breach. There is also no evidence the Russian government had a hand in the attack.

It was believed early on the attack was state-sponsored because of its sophistication, which required the placing of explosives deep below the surface of the Baltic and detonating them while escaping detection.

Russia blamed the British navy for the attack, a claim London accused Moscow of inventing.