Sabotage of Finnish gas pipeline, doubts about Putin’s Russia

After Nord Stream, another natural gas pipeline in Europe would also be sabotaged. This is the Baltic Connector, the 77-kilometer-long underwater pipeline connecting Finland to Estonia, which has been closed since Sunday. The investigation into the leak would show that it was a deliberate act of sabotage, and Helsinki would suspect Vladimir Putin’s Russia of involvement, according to local media. In the afternoon, a press conference was held stating that the country, now a NATO member, posed “serious risks to national security”, but no further information was given at the official level. According to Finnish newspaper Iltalehti, government sources confirmed that not only Prime Minister Petteri Orpo but also Defense Minister Antti Hakkanen should address the nation.

The newspaper claims that the situation is “serious” and that the pipeline is predicted to be out of service for months. In his statement, Finnish President Sauli Niinisto claimed that he met with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, who assured that the Atlantic Alliance was “ready” and said, “The damage to the gas pipeline and communication cable could probably be the result of external activities.” providing assistance in the investigation”. On the night between Saturday, October 7 and Sunday, October 8, just before two o’clock, an unusual pressure drop in the pipeline was observed by the operators of the two countries, Gasgrid Finland Oy and Estonian Elering As.

“Due to the unusual pressure drop, it is logical to assume that the cause of the accident was the damage to the marine gas pipe and the resulting leak. The possible gas leak due to the suspected damage in the pipe section was stopped thanks to ‘isolation’. The two companies said in their statement that gas supplies in Finland were reduced thanks to the LNG terminal He explained that it could still be provided.

Following the outage, investigations by the Border Guard and the Finnish Defense Forces began immediately. Foreign policy and security sources told Iltalehti that the government believed from the beginning that Russia was sabotaging the gas pipeline that runs between Inkoo in Finland and Paldiski in Estonia and crosses the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. It moves east towards Russian waters and reaches St. It ends at the port of St. Petersburg.

Baltic-Connector-pipeline map

Even when the Nord Stream incident occurred, many Western countries pointed the finger at Russia, but later investigations would show that Ukrainian forces were behind the sabotage, although apparently Volodymyr’s government was not linked to Zelensky. Finland joined NATO in April, which would make Russian sabotage, if proven, a possible attack against a member of the Atlantic alliance.

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Source: Today IT

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