Hungarian representatives have stressed the need for a UN investigation into the “scandalous” attack on the Nord Stream pipelines, which some people, including journalist Seymour Hersh, allege were demolished by the United States.
It is widely agreed that the attacks were most probably carried out by a state actor, given that it would be very difficult for an individual group to blow up three of the four pipelines traversing natural gas from Russia to Germany undetected.
The event resulted in Germany and other European nations being even more reliant on US energy.
According to Hersh, the explosion came after U.S. Navy divers planted explosives last June before detonating them three months later, using a BALTOPS 22 NATO exercise as cover. He argued that Joe Biden viewed the pipelines’ existence as an opportunity for Vladimir Putin to weaponize natural gas in order to bring his desired political outcomes.
Perhaps not surprisingly, the White House denied the assertions found in the report.
Hersh has a long track record in reporting—the American journalist famously won the Pulitzer Prize for his exposure of the My Lai Massacre in Vietnam, a tragic event in which U.S. soldiers allegedly killed over 500 people, including women, children, and old men.
“This is basically the first time when such a major European critical infrastructure was attacked. By whoever – but it was attacked,” Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto reportedly told RIA Novosti.
He added that the explosions were a “scandalous” act of terrorism and that the UN must prioritize investigating who may have been responsible, and why.
“I think the UN should give a framework for such an investigation,” Szijjarto said, adding that the international body ought to function as a “platform for countries to talk to each other, who even consider each other as enemies.”
At least a few other Europeans agree with Hungary’s call for a probe. Irish politician Clare Daly, who according to Wikipedia has been a member of the European Parliament since July 2019, referred to the explosion as “one of the biggest acts of economic sabotage ever carried out on the European Union,” adding it is “very very strange” that there is little desire in the parliament for an investigation or discussion surrounding the topic.
She noted that many “people are joining the dots” to see who may have the most to gain or lose, before stating, “without an independent investigation, those questions will continue to be asked.”
The explosion of the #NordStream pipelines is one of the biggest acts of economic sabotage carried out on the #EU. So it is very, very strange that there is no appetite for investigation no appetite for accountability, or restitution, nearly no discussion of it here at all! https://t.co/dAiPDQIYxX pic.twitter.com/HtfYMDTJhF
— Clare Daly (@ClareDalyMEP) February 21, 2023
Joe Biden notably promised in Feb. 2022 that the U.S. would “bring an end to” the Nord Stream 2 pipeline should Russia invade Ukraine, prompting further speculation of the attack being American-led.
