
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.
CNN has reached out to Sweden’s coast guard but did not immediately receive a reply.
Berger 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.
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.
Some context: 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, and have been major flashpoints in the energy war between Europe and Russia.
Neither pipeline was in operation at the time the leaks were found, but both still contained gas under pressure.