The attacks on Norwegian gas pipelines are called the worst thing that could happen. PST warned of sabotage at the latest in 2020. But the police and military have not practiced exactly that.
Gas leaks in the Baltic mean war in Ukraine is approaching. The fear now is that similar explosions will occur on Norwegian gas pipelines. Did we train for such a scenario?
In June, the Norwegian military and police trained for terrorist attacks on Norwegian oil and gas installations. They do this every year.
But emergency response director Tone Vangen in the Norwegian police leadership now says they have not carried out targeted attacks on pipelines.
– I do not have an overview of all the scenarios that have been the basis of the ongoing exercises for many years. But I am not aware that we have actually carried out targeted attacks on pipelines, says Vangen.
– Exercise regularly
What the police and military practice will still be useful, he believes.
– The tasks and interaction we practice will also be useful when dealing with incidents that are not exactly the same as the scenarios that form the basis of the exercise.
The Norwegian Defense Force does not want to answer if they actually practiced it.
– The Norwegian Armed Forces assist the police in preparing for offshore terrorism, among other things. We train regularly for this, writes Stine Barclay Gaasland, lieutenant colonel and press contact in the Armed Forces in an email.
PST warned in 2020
The Norwegian Police Security Service (PST) has been warning for several years that Russian intelligence services are obtaining information on the Norwegian oil sector.
Until two years ago, they warned against using the information they collect: sabotage.
And they describe such a situation very dramatically:
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