Germany acts to avert another Nord Stream-like incident – reports
Germany is said to be preparing to send specially trained divers to the Baltic Sea to thwart potential attacks akin to the Nord Stream sabotage. Read Full Article at RT.com.
TroibNews 
Germany's Interior Ministry has decided to permanently station a police tactical unit at the Baltic Sea port of Neustadt to ensure quick responses to potential attacks on “critical infrastructure,” as reported by Der Spiegel on Friday.
This decision was reportedly influenced by the September 2022 Nord Stream pipeline explosions, which highlighted a “clear” risk of “acts of sabotage,” according to security sources cited by the media outlet.
The GSG 9, Germany's Federal Police's counterterrorism division, includes a maritime deployment unit known as GSG 9/2, which consists of specially trained divers and is equipped with speedboats. They also have access to vessels belonging to the Federal Police, as noted by Der Spiegel.
Other German media have indicated that while the ministry did not confirm Der Spiegel's report of the unit’s redeployment, it stated that it cannot disclose “specific information” regarding the deployment locations of GSG 9 for “tactical reasons.”
“In the view of the current threats… through acts of sabotage against critical infrastructure or terrorist [attacks], a rapid crisis response ability is important,” a ministerial spokesman told journalists.
A regional lawmaker in Schleswig-Holstein, where Neustadt is located, mentioned that the decision was made on Wednesday. MP Bettina Hagedorn said, “In Neustadt, the Federal Police has its own port… hosting four 86m-long emergency vessels,” which GSG 9 can utilize if necessary.
The Nord Stream gas pipelines, vital for delivering Russian gas to Germany and Europe, were damaged in underwater blasts in September 2022. Berlin has initiated an investigation into the incident but has yet to share any findings. Moscow has asserted that German authorities have refused to provide any information to Russia.
Western media has frequently claimed that a privately funded group of Ukrainian divers was allegedly responsible for the attack. Some reports suggested that this group acted on orders from General Valery Zaluzhny, who was subsequently dismissed and took on a role as Kiev’s ambassador to the UK.
Russia has also suggested that the US may have been involved in the incident, with the Russian foreign intelligence service, the SVR, asserting in September that Washington and London orchestrated the 2022 sabotage as economic warfare against their EU allies, subsequently pressuring Berlin to conceal the truth.
In February 2023, investigative journalist Seymour Hersh, who has won a Pulitzer Prize, published a report alleging that Washington ordered the destruction of the Nord Stream pipelines. The US denied these accusations at the time, calling the report “utterly false.”
German lawmaker Sahra Wagenknecht has raised concerns about the government’s silence on the matter and has advocated for an independent parliamentary investigative committee to examine the issue.
Emily Johnson contributed to this report for TROIB News
This decision was reportedly influenced by the September 2022 Nord Stream pipeline explosions, which highlighted a “clear” risk of “acts of sabotage,” according to security sources cited by the media outlet.
The GSG 9, Germany's Federal Police's counterterrorism division, includes a maritime deployment unit known as GSG 9/2, which consists of specially trained divers and is equipped with speedboats. They also have access to vessels belonging to the Federal Police, as noted by Der Spiegel.
Other German media have indicated that while the ministry did not confirm Der Spiegel's report of the unit’s redeployment, it stated that it cannot disclose “specific information” regarding the deployment locations of GSG 9 for “tactical reasons.”
“In the view of the current threats… through acts of sabotage against critical infrastructure or terrorist [attacks], a rapid crisis response ability is important,” a ministerial spokesman told journalists.
A regional lawmaker in Schleswig-Holstein, where Neustadt is located, mentioned that the decision was made on Wednesday. MP Bettina Hagedorn said, “In Neustadt, the Federal Police has its own port… hosting four 86m-long emergency vessels,” which GSG 9 can utilize if necessary.
The Nord Stream gas pipelines, vital for delivering Russian gas to Germany and Europe, were damaged in underwater blasts in September 2022. Berlin has initiated an investigation into the incident but has yet to share any findings. Moscow has asserted that German authorities have refused to provide any information to Russia.
Western media has frequently claimed that a privately funded group of Ukrainian divers was allegedly responsible for the attack. Some reports suggested that this group acted on orders from General Valery Zaluzhny, who was subsequently dismissed and took on a role as Kiev’s ambassador to the UK.
Russia has also suggested that the US may have been involved in the incident, with the Russian foreign intelligence service, the SVR, asserting in September that Washington and London orchestrated the 2022 sabotage as economic warfare against their EU allies, subsequently pressuring Berlin to conceal the truth.
In February 2023, investigative journalist Seymour Hersh, who has won a Pulitzer Prize, published a report alleging that Washington ordered the destruction of the Nord Stream pipelines. The US denied these accusations at the time, calling the report “utterly false.”
German lawmaker Sahra Wagenknecht has raised concerns about the government’s silence on the matter and has advocated for an independent parliamentary investigative committee to examine the issue.
Emily Johnson contributed to this report for TROIB News
