The Russian Ministry of Defense made a very serious charge to the United Kingdom on the 29th – the “terrorist attack” on the “North Stream” pipeline was planned and implemented by representatives of the British Navy. In response, Britain hit back tit-for-tat, saying Russia had made an “epic false statement”. What does this confrontation between the two mean?
According to the Russian Satellite News Agency, the Russian Ministry of Defense said that representatives of the British Navy participated in the planning and implementation of the “terrorist attack” that destroyed the “Nord Stream” in the Baltic Sea on September 26.
According to the TASS news agency, the Russian side made the accusation at the daily briefing of the Ministry of Defense.
The briefing usually announces important information such as the situation of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict every day, and it is very concerned. The Russian side made an accusation on such an occasion, allowing the news to quickly spread around the world.
According to reports, at the briefing, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov first revealed details of the attack by 16 drones on ships of the Black Sea Fleet and civilian ships in Sevastopol – British expert Soldiers of the 73rd Ukrainian Special Maritime Operations Center were trained in Ochakov, Nikolaev Oblast, Ukraine in preparation for the “terrorist attack” Sevastopol.
Konashenkov said that according to available information, representatives of this part of the British Navy were also involved in the planning and implementation of the “terrorist attack” in the Baltic Sea on September 26, which was aimed at blowing up Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2. natural gas pipeline.
On September 26, three natural gas pipelines of Beixi No. 1 and Beixi No. 2 suffered damage and natural gas leakage. Seismologists recorded two explosions along the route of the gas pipeline. The Russian Federal Security Service opened the case for an “act of international terrorism”. The Russian Prosecutor General’s Office has filed a lawsuit over the “act of international terrorism”.
After the “North Stream” explosion, Swedish officials conducted an investigation and determined that it was deliberately sabotaged, but no further details were released, and Russia refused to participate in the investigation.
Both the UK and US media have hinted at the Russian sabotage, and the UK defence secretary has publicly stated, “I always think it’s better to keep the foxes out of the chicken coop”, so any potential assistance from Moscow during the investigation will not be accepted.
In this regard, Russian Presidential Press Secretary Peskov said that the investigation process did not involve Russian experts, which would allow representatives of European countries to arbitrarily say that it was Russia’s fault and adapt the investigation results into a version that is beneficial to the West.
In the past, although the two parties came and went, most of them were alluding to each other, and they did not publicly name and accuse the other party.
Now the Russian Ministry of Defense has officially accused the British Navy representative of participating in the planning and implementation of this “international terrorist act”, which is undoubtedly a very serious accusation.
In the international community, there are not many cases of one country accusing another country of engaging in terrorism, and the consequences are usually severe. The most familiar is the U.S. accusation that the Taliban regime in Afghanistan supported al-Qaeda and led to the war in Afghanistan. In addition, the United States also lists the so-called “state sponsors of terrorism”, imposing sanctions on some countries, and even launching wars.
What do the Russian charges mean?
According to Russian media reports, Vladimir Zabarov, First Deputy Chairman of the International Committee of the Russian Federation Council, said that the data of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation justified a request for London to compensate all participants of the “North Stream” project for the loss.
Of course, under the current international situation, even if the Russian side has definite evidence to prove that the British naval experts participated in the planning and implementation of the damage to the “North Stream”, it is difficult to get compensation from London. But preemptive accusations can always gain some initiative in the field of public opinion.
The UK has been quick to hit back, claiming Russia is “selling false claims” about the gas pipeline explosion.
Britain has hit back after Moscow accused a Royal Navy unit of the bombing of a vital gas pipeline, Sky TV reported.
The British Ministry of Defence said Russia had made an “epic false statement” to “deflect attention from the catastrophic consequences of the illegal invasion of Ukraine”. British military experts said the Russian claim was a “straightforward lie” and that the British navy was incapable of carrying out such an attack.