Liz Truss has said that a series of explosions that severely damaged the Nord Stream underwater gas pipelines were an act of sabotage.
In a joint report delivered to the United Nations last week, the Danish and Swedish governments have claimed that the leaks from the Nord Stream pipelines, which can carry gas to Germany, were caused by explosions equivalent to the power of “several hundred kilograms of explosive”.
The UK Prime Minister was briefed on developments in the Baltic Sea as she held talks with her Danish counterpart, Mette Frederiksen, in Downing Street on Saturday.
Suspicions have been growing in Western capitals that the pipeline explosions were attacks carried out by Russia as a means of intensifying pressure on Western governments over energy supplies. Russian President Vladimir Putin has rejected those claims, saying in a speech on Friday that the “Anglo-Saxons” were responsible.
Calling the blasts a “terrorist attack,” Putin said the blasts were an attempt to “destroy Europe’s energy infrastructure.” However, the US State Department has described Putin’s comments as “absurd” and an act of “Russian disinformation”.
After the meeting between Truss and Frederiksen, a No 10 spokesman said the leaders had stressed the importance of standing “united against Russia’s despicable action in Ukraine”. The spokeswoman confirmed the Prime Minister and her Danish counterpart had agreed the incidents were “clearly an act of sabotage”, and Truss offered the UK’s support for the ongoing investigation.
While neither leader sought to take responsibility for the incident, speaking to reporters outside Number 10, Frederiksen said: “One of the reasons I’m here today is because of the situation in the Baltic Sea, with Nord Stream 1 and 2.
“I was able to give some details about what has happened in Denmark, or outside of Denmark. Of course, it has been very important for me to stress that the Danish authorities have said that this is not an accident.
“This is sabotage and it is a critical infrastructure. So, of course, this is a very serious situation.”
Neither Nord Stream pipeline is operational although both still contain gas.
Nord Stream 1 has not carried any gas since late August, when Russia shut it down for maintenance; Nord Stream 2 was halted after Russia invaded Ukraine in February.