In October of last year, I authored and published on this website an analysis of Western media coverage of the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines. Although Western media laughably claimed that Russia had likely blown up its own infrastructure, I argued that the most plausible culprit was the United States, and that the U.S. might well have been aided in this crime by one or more NATO allies.
In making my case, I specifically referenced a U.S. military exercise that had been conducted near the site of the sabotage several weeks prior to the explosion:
Moreover, in June of this year, the U.S. military conducted the BALTOPS naval exercise off the coast of Bornholm to demonstrate NATO’s mine hunting capabilities. According to an official publication of the Navy League of the United States, this exercise was used as “an opportunity to test emerging technology”:
“In support of BALTOPS, U.S. Navy 6th Fleet partnered with U.S. Navy research and warfare centers to bring the latest advancements in unmanned underwater vehicle mine hunting technology to the Baltic Sea to demonstrate the vehicle’s effectiveness in operational scenarios. Experimentation was conducted off the coast of Bornholm, Denmark, with participants from Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific, Naval Undersea Warfare Center Newport, and Mine Warfare Readiness and Effectiveness Measuring all under the direction of U.S. 6th Fleet Task Force 68.”
By contrast, I’m aware of no reports of the presence of Russian military assets at or near the site of sabotage in the months leading up to the incident.
Today, renowned, award-winning investigative journalist Seymour Hersh has published a lengthy report on the Nord Stream sabotage. Hersh reports that, according to a source with direct knowledge of the matter, in June 2022, U.S. Navy divers, operating under the cover of the BALTOPS 22 military exercise, planted remotely triggered explosives that, three months later, destroyed three of the four Nord Stream pipelines. Hersh’s source also claims that the Norwegian military participated in the crime.
Importantly, the source also reveals that U.S. planning for the sabotaged began before Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, at the direction of Biden himself.
At this stage, Hersh’s article has received limited attention from the Western corporate media, although Reuters reports that the White House has asserted that Hersh’s report is “utterly false and complete fiction”.
Maybe Hersh’s reporting will now inspire other major media outlets to finally accord to this crime the importance and journalistic diligence that it deserves, but I won’t hold my breath.
Thank you.
Two instances of Hersh’s name are misspelled as “Harsh”.