When three of four sections of the Nord Stream pipeline blew up on Sept. 26, 2022, speculations went wild as to who was behind the act of sabotage.
The explosion resulted in the largest release of natural gas in history, equal to Denmark’s carbon dioxide annual output, and rattled the European energy sector. Among the main suspects were Russia, blamed by Ukraine and several Western figures, alleging a false flag; the United States, blamed by Russia; and Ukraine, blamed by some analysts.
Ukrainian intelligence was identified months after as the primary suspect. Nearly two years later, an in-depth Wall Street Journal investigation, based on interviews with four senior Ukrainian defense and security officials, largely corroborated by a German government investigation, has reportedly uncovered the details of the audacious operation.
Here are the eight most shocking revelations from the Nord Stream pipeline sabotage plot:
‘Born out of a night of heavy boozing’
Despite the complexity of the operation, one officer involved in the plot said its genesis was an alcohol-fueled night of celebration.
“I always laugh when I read media speculation about some huge operation involving secret services, submarines, drones, and satellites,” the officer said. “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.”
While celebrating early victories against Russia in May 2022, a group of military officers and citizens concocted an elaborate plot to destroy Russia’s main economic connection with the West — the Nord Stream pipeline. It was a joint project between Russia and Germany, the latter of which was one of the main backers of Ukraine in its war with Russia. Nevertheless, the pipeline was seen as a crucial target that could play a key role in halting the Russian invasion.
The operation cost $300,000, but the military couldn’t afford it
Despite the grand scale of the operation, it cost less than a third of Ukraine’s most prevalent tank, the T-64, which costs around $1.1 million. The crew, explosives, and rented yacht cost just $300,000 — to destroy a pipeline valued at about $17 billion.
Despite this low cost, however, the Army was unable to pay for the operation because it was almost fully reliant on foreign funds to keep normal military operations afloat. At the May 2022 meeting, it was agreed that businessmen would privately fund the operation.
A 50-foot pleasure yacht carried out the operation
To provide adequate cover, the operation was not carried out by a vessel suited for military operations. Instead, the saboteurs rented a 50-foot pleasure yacht, the Andromeda, which was rented out of the German port of Rostok. The vessel itself was leased by a supposed Polish travel agency, which was really a cover for financial transactions set up by Ukrainian intelligence more than a decade ago.
The crew consisted of six people, a mix of military personnel and civilians, among them a military officer and experienced boat captain and four experienced deep-sea divers. One member of the crew was a woman in her 30s, purposefully chosen to create the impression of a group of friends out on holiday.
Zelensky approved of the operation but attempted to call it off after the CIA caught wind
According to one officer involved in the operation and three people familiar with it, speaking with the Wall Street Journal, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky originally approved of the operation. Valery Zaluzhny, then the commander in chief of the armed forces, was in charge of it.
However, in June 2022, the Dutch intelligence agency MIVD learned of the plot and tipped off the CIA. After approaching Zelensky, he decided to call the operation off. According to those familiar with the situation, Zaluzhny ignored the order and pressed onward.
After the operation, Zelensky reportedly angrily approached Zaluzhny. The military chief shrugged it off, suggesting that he had called it off too late.
“He was told it’s like a torpedo — once you fire it at the enemy, you can’t pull it back again, it just keeps going until it goes ‘boom,’” a person familiar with the conversation said.
The German government investigation is targeting Zaluzhny and his aides. Now the ambassador to the United Kingdom, he denied any involvement in the operation or wrongdoing.
The crew roused suspicion and encountered several problems
The crew members boarded the Andromeda, flying a Ukrainian flag, and set out in September 2022. They took with them diving equipment, satellite navigation, a portable sonar, open-source maps, and a light, powerful explosive known as HMX. The mission quickly encountered several problems, mainly inclement weather.
The weather forced a detour to the Swedish port of Sandhamn and a brief discussion as to whether the mission should be abandoned. One diver accidentally dropped one of the explosive charges into the sea.
Nevertheless, the crew overcame the troubles and successfully planted the explosives, diving through the frigid Baltic waters.
Dutch intelligence played a key role in uncovering the plot
Days after the attack, an unlikely group emerged as one of the primary investigators of the plot — Dutch intelligence. The Netherlands developed an advanced intelligence network in Ukraine and Russia after the downing of Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 in 2014, which bore fruit following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
An MIVD report, passed onto the CIA, which then passed it onto German intelligence, gave a detailed account of the attack, including the type of vessel used and a possible route taken to the site, German and Dutch officials told the Wall Street Journal.
Another Dutch report linked Zaluzhny and the Ukrainian military to the attack.
The German government is furious
The pinning of the attack on Ukraine caused a major rift in relations due to the extensive economic cost incurred by the sabotage. One German official suggested that in normal circumstances, such an attack could trigger an invasion of the country by NATO.
“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 familiar with the investigation said.
The prospect of Ukraine being behind the attack was seen as so damaging that German officials repeatedly floated the possibility that it was a Russian false flag intended to make Ukraine look bad.
German authorities vigorously pursued those believed responsible for the attack, finding the Polish government particularly uncooperative. On Wednesday, the Polish government announced that a man identified only as “Volodymyr Z.” had been issued an arrest warrant but he slipped out of the country before he could be detained.
Unfortunately for German authorities, they have found Polish authorities less than cooperative in the investigation.
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Russia doesn’t believe the story: ‘Fairy tales worthy of the Brothers Grimm’
Despite the investigation clearing Russia of any culpability in the attack, Russian authorities are not buying it. Russian President Vladimir Putin has blamed the attack on the “Anglo-Saxons,” referring to the U.S. and United Kingdom.
One senior Russian diplomat based in Berlin said the conclusions of the German investigation pinning the blame on Ukraine were “fairy tales worthy of the Brothers Grimm.”