Chinanews.com, Nov. 19 -- The investigation of the leakage of the "Nord Stream" natural gas pipeline has been going on for more than a month, and new progress has been made on the Swedish side. Swedish prosecutors said on the 18th that investigators found traces of explosives at the site of the damaged "Nord Stream" pipeline, which proved that someone was deliberately sabotaging.
Data map: A leak occurred in the Nord Stream natural gas pipeline.
"Traces of explosives found at the scene!"
The Swedish prosecutor's office reported the progress of the investigation on the 18th, confirming that the explosion of the "Nord Stream" natural gas pipeline was "intentional sabotage". Prosecutors said technical analysis showed that several of the items found so far had traces of explosives.
Swedish media released live video of unmanned underwater vehicles as early as last month. Video footage shows that a section of at least 50 meters of pipe is missing from the leak site of the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, and the metal pipe wall at the remaining part is also deformed.
According to reports, the submersible was filmed at a depth of about 80 meters below sea level, and only extremely strong forces can deform extremely thick metals in the video. The seafloor around the pipeline has also been hit by a huge impact.
All investigations point to one result?
The Nord Stream-1 gas pipeline from Russia to Germany was once the "artery" of energy transportation in Europe. After the explosion at the end of September, investigations were launched.
Infographic: Gazprom headquarters building.
So far, Denmark, Sweden, Germany and other parties have sent survey ships to the Baltic region, and the staff has taken pictures, inspected and studied the bottom of the pipeline to investigate the cause of the incident.
Preliminary findings from the Danish side in mid-October also indicated that the damage to the pipeline was caused by a violent explosion.
A month after the explosion, Gazprom was also allowed to participate in the on-site investigation. The Russians found two craters 3 and 5 meters deep, and the explosion ripped off a 40-meter-long pipeline, similar to the results of the investigation released by Sweden.
Sweden said cooperation was going well so far, but would not provide further information so that investigators could continue their work "quietly."
When did the mastermind come to the surface?
Who is behind the explosion of the Nord Stream pipeline? It is unknown at this time.
Data map: Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov.
At the end of October, the Russian Ministry of Defense said that British experts were involved in the attack on the Nord Stream gas pipeline and the Russian Black Sea Fleet. However, the British Ministry of Defense immediately denied the Russian claim.
For its part, Swedish prosecutors argued that they had conducted a "very complex and comprehensive" investigation and would continue to analyze to reach more reliable conclusions and determine whether the analysis could identify suspects.
Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov also said that Swedish data have supported that the leak of the Nord Stream pipeline was caused by "deliberate sabotage" or "terrorist attacks", once again confirming the information that Russia has obtained.
Peskov believes that it is crucial to continue the investigation and find the "mastermind" behind the scenes.