The German publication Spiegel has again published material that a team from Ukraine organized the bombing of Russia’s Nord Stream pipeline. Journalists claim that they have named most of the team members, but will not name them publicly so as not to endanger them.

Source: “European Truth” with reference to it articlewhich was published on November 20

Details: The publication continues Spiegel’s previous investigation with the allegation that “Ukrainian search” – a support group with a team of about a dozen civilians and military from Ukraine, including one woman. The group was reportedly recruited and led by individuals who had been involved in the work of Ukrainian intelligence services for years, and the entire operation cost less than $300,000.

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The publication’s research team spoke to Western intelligence sources, investigators, diving and explosives experts, and examined documents and digital traces.

Journalists claim that they have named most of the team members, but will not name them publicly so as not to endanger them.

They describe the plan as “an adventure that could have been successful only because of reckless determination and enormous character,” as well as a lack of security surveillance and political intelligence.

The publication recalls that investigators found traces of explosives on the Andromeda yacht, and that one of the divers, who had a European arrest warrant, left Poland with the help of a Ukrainian diplomat and as due to a warning from Poland. side

According to the article, the Andromeda went on a mission with several divers on board, including a woman, a captain, an assistant, a commander, and “at least half a dozen bombs”. The yacht was rented for 11,900 euros for the period from August 27 to September 24.

During September, the team sailed the Baltic Sea in the waters of four countries – Poland, Germany, Denmark and Sweden, choosing “the right time and the right place” so that it was not too deep and there was not too much sea traffic.

Investigators claim to have spoken in Kyiv with a person familiar with the operation, reportedly known as “Diameter”. He introduced himself by his call sign, in the article he was called “Andrey”.

This correspondent defended the Nord Streams bombing as a military target within the framework of Ukraine’s legitimate self-defense. He argued that the operation was not intended to harm Germany in any way, but to deprive Russia of the huge income it would receive thanks to Nord Stream.

Spiegel investigators believe that the direct coordinator of the operation may have been the intelligence officer Roman Chervinsky, who was known for his involvement in several high-profile operations, including the effort. arrest militants of PMC “Wagner” ” in July 2020, which is now under investigation for abuse of power due to the failure of one of jobs 2022.

Investigators managed to meet with him briefly when the hospital exited. According to the recount of events, Chervinsky said that he did not want to talk about sabotage on the Nord Stream, but he said that “the consequences of this attack are very positive not only for Ukraine, but also for Germany. “

Regarding the German investigation, Chervinsky said that they are doing their job, “but by doing it they are also helping Russia.” “Anyone who blew the streams was a military target,” he said, and emphasized that no one was harmed except the gas pipeline. That was the end of the conversation. .

Journalists suggest that the idea of ​​such an operation could have appeared even before the start of a full-scale war – in 2019, due to the understanding of all the dangers of the Nord Stream, but the preparations began immediately in April 2022.

The interlocutor “Andrey” revealed that a retired expert who lost his son in the war helped to think through the “explosive” part of the work. The idea was to turn the air tanks used by divers into explosives.

At the same time, they found divers who had the technical training to carry out such a task, starting with the question of whether they wanted to do something very useful for their country. So five people were chosen. The group then spent several weeks practicing the future descent with explosives in a flooded mine, where they can dive to a depth of 100 meters.

When it became clear that the plan could be brought to life, the coordinator would say that he asked for a “green light” from the Commander-in-Chief Valery Zaluzhny. He is said to have been surprised and asked if President Zelensky knew about the plan. They told him no. It is said that they even discussed two operations at the same time – in the Baltic and against the Turkish Stream, but the latter failed.

Journalists question whether such an important operation could be done without the president’s knowledge.

Funds for the preparation of the operation – equipment, logistics and yacht rental – were allegedly provided by an entrepreneur close to the Ukrainian special services. The divers worked without pay and even pledged their own money.

It is said that the Western intelligence services began to suspect that such damage was being prepared from June 2022, and a Swedish agent became aware of some of the preparations. After that, through communication channels between the friends, the information reached the CIA, and according to reports, a representative of the agency went to the Office of the President in Kyiv and signaled the need to stop the operation. There were also connections between American services directly and Ukrainian ones. However, in the end the team did not get a clear signal to cancel the work.

Germany also received information from the allies, but it did not see it as a real threat and the relevant departments were not warned.

The explosives hidden in the cylinders were smuggled across the border unnoticed. The participants went up separately to the assembly center in Poland, after which they took “clean” phones for further coordination and waited for a long time for a sign that everything was ready with the documentary part of the “cover”. They allegedly forged low-quality Bulgarian and Romanian documents.

During the days of the work, the weather was unfavorable, the divers waited for a long time whether it is safe to dive​​​​, and they had several problems in the process. The maritime administration of the Polish city, where they first returned, was suspicious of the crew and their passport information was recorded, but that was over.

The yacht returned to the port of Rostock, from where it originally departed, on 23 September.

Background information:

• The last time before this, the “Ukrainian trace” in Russian pipeline bombing was actively restored at the end of the summer of 2023.
• Then The Wall Street Journal published material in which it claims that Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky approved the operation to undermine Nord Stream, and then he tried to turn it off unsuccessfully.

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