Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday accused the United States and its allies of blowing up the twin Nord Stream natural gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea, charges that are likely to escalate tensions further with Russia as the European Union continues its investigations into the blasts.
Speaking at a ceremony Friday designed to mark Russia’s annex of four Ukrainian regions, Putin claimed without evidence that the “Anglo-Saxons” in the West had moved beyond sanctions on its energy sector and on to “sabotage” of the Nord Stream pipelines linking Moscow to Germany.
“They began to destroy the pan-European energy infrastructure,” Putin said of the West, adding, “It is clear to everyone who benefits from this.”
President Joe Biden rebutted Putin’s accusation Friday, saying at the White House that while leaders don’t yet know the details of what happened or who is responsible, what Putin is saying “is not true.”
“Let me say this, it was a deliberate act of sabotage, and now, the Russians are pumping out disinformation and lies,” Biden said.
He said the U.S. has already directed resources to help its EU allies enhance the protection of its critical energy infrastructure.
At “the appropriate moment when things calm down, we’re going to send divers down to find out exactly what happened,” Biden said. “We don’t know that yet.”
His comments come one day after Spanish Energy Minister Teresa Ribera blamed Russia for the Nord Stream blasts. Speaking to reporters Thursday, she said of the explosions: “It was a deliberate act, and in my opinion, it can very likely be linked to the push for constant provocation by the Kremlin.”
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German news outlet Der Spiegel reported this week that the CIA warned Berlin this summer about possible attacks on its gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea.
The European Union has declined to name anyone responsible for the blasts until it can investigate them further, though it has said it believes the attacks were an act of sabotage. Leaders said this week that any deliberate act would be met with a “robust and united response.”
International Agency Chief Fatih Birol said it was “very obvious” who was behind the blasts, though he stopped short of saying who.
Putin’s remarks came shortly before leaders gathered in New York on Friday morning for an emergency U.N. Security Council meeting to discuss the Nord Stream blasts.
A major focus of that gathering will likely be to discuss new efforts to protect EU energy infrastructure, which leaders have warned is vulnerable to further attacks.
In particular, leaders are calling for more protection around the newly opened Baltic Pipe running between Norway and Poland. Many analysts have warned that Norway should increase its protection of its infrastructure, since it is now Europe’s largest provider of natural gas.
“The Norwegian government has to realize that by far the most important strategic object in all of Europe now is the energy or gas imports from Norway,” Tor Ivar Stroemmen, a senior lecturer at the Royal Norwegian Naval Academy, told Reuters earlier this week.
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“If those deliveries should be cut or stopped or reduced by a large amount, this would cause a complete energy crisis in Europe,” he added.
