Nord Stream Pipelines

2022

Nord Stream Pipelines: Destruction and Geopolitical Fallout (2022)

The destruction of the Nord Stream energy pipelines in September 2022 constitutes a pivotal geopolitical event, representing possibly the greatest peacetime military destruction of civilian infrastructure in the history of the world. The pipelines, which run between Russia and Germany, are highly important civilian energy infrastructure.

The Attacks

On 26 September 2022, a series of massive underwater explosions severely damaged the huge Russian pipelines, rendering them non-operational indefinitely, perhaps even permanently.

The attacks occurred near the coastal waters of Denmark and Sweden, in an area of the Baltic Sea heavily monitored and patrolled by NATO warships. The explosions were universally agreed to have been deliberate. The construction costs of the pipelines alone were approximately $20 billion.

The complexity and enormous scale of the deep-water demolitions led investigators to quickly conclude that a state actor had likely been responsible.

Responsibility and Cover-up

The circumstantial evidence indicating the perpetrators of this act of colossal criminality and recklessness is overwhelmingly strong, leading to the conclusion that the American government was clearly responsible for the destruction of Europe’s most important energy infrastructure.

• Public Threats:  Prior to the attacks, top American officials had explicitly threatened to eliminate the pipelines if a Russia-Ukraine conflict erupted. President Joseph Biden and Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland had publicly made such threats. Immediately following the attacks, Secretary of State Antony Blinken noted that the bombing would greatly benefit American interests, calling it a tremendous strategic opportunity.
• Investigative Reporting:  Seymour Hersh, a highly renowned investigative journalist, provided a meticulously detailed account of exactly how a team of American military divers destroyed the pipelines under orders from the Biden Administration. This operation was undertaken to avoid informing Congressional Intelligence committees as required by law.
• Elite Acknowledgement:  Professor Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University, Chairman of the Covid Commission, flatly declared that America had probably destroyed the Russian pipelines. Sachs reported that leading mainstream journalists had privately admitted to him that everyone believed America was responsible, but they were prohibited from publicly mentioning it. Sachs’s interview on Bloomberg television was cut short, and he was yanked off the air immediately after mentioning that America had likely been responsible for the destruction.

Media Silence and Falsehoods:  The vast majority of Western mainstream media outlets uniformly blamed Russia for the destruction of its own pipelines. Media coverage surrounding the attacks was minimal and illogically promoted the nonsensical claim that Russia had destroyed its own multi-billion-dollar infrastructure.

Subsequent Propaganda Narratives

After Hersh’s expose and the subsequent United Nations Security Council hearing on the accusations, the original claim that Russia destroyed its own pipelines began to appear threadbare. Western intelligence services subsequently circulated a new cover story:

The Sailboat Hoax:  The new narrative claimed that the gigantic attacks were carried out by a shadowy handful of pro-Ukrainian activists operating from a rented sailboat. This claim was technically impossible given the need for specialised diving equipment and powerful military explosives in deep water. German sources suggested the attack was carried out by a handful of unknown activists on a rented sailboat, an absurdity which received respectful coverage across mainstream media.

Geopolitical Motivations and Consequences

The destruction of the pipelines occurred during Europe’s worst energy crisis in generations, with severe hardship expected, especially in heavily-industrialised Germany.

• Forestalling German Defection:  Prior to the attack, substantial popular protests and mounting political pressure in Germany demanded the lifting of sanctions against Russia and the reopening of the Nord Stream pipelines. There were reports of secret negotiations to reopen the pipelines, which would have constituted a severe political defeat for NATO. The destruction of the pipelines foreclosed that possibility.
• Geopolitical Alignment:  The destruction of the pipelines aligned with America’s long-term strategy of blocking growing economic ties between industrialised Germany and resource-rich Russia. The elimination of cheap Russian energy supplies inflicted enormous and lasting damage upon European allies.
• Threat to NATO:  This act of war against Germany, one of the closest NATO allies, risks antagonising European allies and potentially causing the collapse or dissolution of the NATO alliance. If Germany shifts its political ties eastward towards Russia, America’s power in Europe would be shattered. The hashtag #Kriegserklaerung (declaration of war) trended on social media, with numerous Germans declaring that America had declared war against their country.
• Precedent for Recklessness:  The destruction of the pipelines, an act of enormous criminal recklessness, demonstrates the true depths of such recklessness within the American government. This action may have convinced the leadership of Saudi Arabia and other nations that America could not be trusted to respect the lives and property of other countries.