Russian military vessels spotted near Nord Stream pipelines prior to explosions, reports suggest
Military ships of the Russian Federation could lay explosives in the Nord Streams (Photo:REUTERS / Anton Vaganov)
Russian warships were detected near the Nord Stream-1 and Nord Stream-2 gas pipelines a few days before they were destroyed by explosions, German publication t-online reported on March 25, suggesting that these vessels may have been responsible for planting explosive devices on the pipelines.
To support their claims, the publication analyzed publicly available data and satellite images to track the movements of the Russian fleet in the days before the explosions, adding new details to the ongoing investigation.
The report reveals that a week prior to the explosions, on Sept. 19, the Baltic Fleet of the Russian Navy initiated large-scale maneuvers that could have served as a smokescreen for covert operations.
In particular, combat swimmers of the 313th special forces unit from the Baltiysk base in Kaliningrad were involved in the maneuvers. According to the publication, these are elite soldiers with skills in underwater subversive and sabotage operations.
In the following days, large suspicious vessels with their trackers turned off just appeared in the area of the explosions days before they were detected, according to data from the satellite data monitoring company SpaceKnow.
In the following days, large suspicious vessels with deactivated trackers appeared in the area of the explosions, a few days before their detection, according to satellite data from the monitoring company SpaceKnow.
According to t-online, the Russian warships involved in the maneuvers did not transmit data about their whereabouts, and had the necessary equipment, including mini-submarines and cargo cranes, for installing explosive devices on the pipelines.
Some reports suggest that Russia also deployed a frigate, a corvette, and a smaller reconnaissance ship that could have been used to support the operation.
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