Newsman: The Nord Stream pipelines leak is in a “constant flow” of gas to the surface.A fourth leak in the Nord Stream pipelines was confirmed by Sweden’s coast guard on Thursday.
Germany’s ambassador to the United Kingdom on Thursday said a fourth leak had been discovered in the Nord Stream pipelines connecting Russia to Germany and that there was a “very strong indication” these were acts of sabotage.
“It didn’t happen just like that. We think that there is a very, very strong indication these were acts of sabotage,” Miguel Berger, Germany’s ambassador to the UK, told BBC Radio 4 on Thursday.
“We have two gas leakages in Danish and two in Swedish economic exclusive zones,” Berger added.
Germany’s ambassador said Sweden and Denmark would lead the investigation into the leaks but that results were likely to take up to 10 days because gas is still escaping from the pipelines.
Currently, it’s too dangerous to investigate,” Berger said.
Miguel Berger said that in Germany’s view, “everything indicated” the leaks were not the product of natural causes and that a non-state actor could not have caused this damage.
He did not blame Russia for the leaks but said it was too early to rule anything out.
Sweden’s coast guard said in a statement,
“There are currently two gas leaks in Swedish waters, a larger leak above North Stream 1, and a smaller leak above North Stream 2. Two leaks have also been reported in Danish waters.”
The coast guard added that one of its vessels near the pair of leaks in its home seas was reporting a “constant flow” of gas to the surface.
The confirmation comes after Germany’s ambassador to the UK, Miguel Berger, said earlier Thursday that a fourth leak had been discovered.
The leaks in Swedish waters are approximately 1.8 kilometers (1 nautical mile or 1.1 miles) apart, with the distance from the smaller Swedish leak to the closest Danish leak being 4.6 kilometers (2.6 nautical miles), the coast guard said.
The statement concluded by specifying that the coast guard’s vessel is in possession of a remotely operated vehicle but not a submarine, which the Swedish Coast Guard said it neither owns nor operates.
: Swedish authorities sounded the alarm on Tuesday about leaks in the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines – both of which run under the Baltic Sea near Sweden and Denmark. Neither pipeline was in operation at the time the leaks were found, but both still contained gas under pressure
