{"id":232373,"date":"2023-03-27T12:00:39","date_gmt":"2023-03-27T11:00:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=232373"},"modified":"2023-03-27T05:56:30","modified_gmt":"2023-03-27T04:56:30","slug":"russia-calls-for-u-n-investigation-of-nord-stream-attack-as-hersh-accuses-white-house-of-false-flag","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2023\/03\/russia-calls-for-u-n-investigation-of-nord-stream-attack-as-hersh-accuses-white-house-of-false-flag\/","title":{"rendered":"Russia Calls for U.N. Investigation of Nord Stream Attack, as Hersh Accuses White House of False Flag"},"content":{"rendered":"<blockquote><p><em>Moscow claims Germany, Denmark, and Sweden are engaged in a U.S.-backed cover-up, as the war to control the narrative \u2014 and the evidence \u2014 intensifies.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<div id=\"attachment_232374\" style=\"width: 560px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/nordstream-russia-usa-eu-energy-pipeline.jpg\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-232374\" class=\"wp-image-232374\" src=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/nordstream-russia-usa-eu-energy-pipeline-1024x512.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"550\" height=\"275\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/nordstream-russia-usa-eu-energy-pipeline-1024x512.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/nordstream-russia-usa-eu-energy-pipeline-300x150.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/nordstream-russia-usa-eu-energy-pipeline-768x384.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/nordstream-russia-usa-eu-energy-pipeline-1536x768.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/nordstream-russia-usa-eu-energy-pipeline.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 550px) 100vw, 550px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-232374\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Unused pipes for the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia to Germany are being stored on the site of the port in Sassnitz, Germany, on Feb. 22, 2023.<br \/>Photo: Stefan Sauer\/picture alliance via Getty Images<\/p><\/div>\n<p><em>25 Mar 2023 &#8211; <\/em>The Russian government\u00a0has accused Germany, Denmark, and Sweden of a cover-up in their investigations into the sabotage attacks on the Nord Stream pipelines last September. Moscow, with the support of China, plans to introduce a resolution before the United Nations Security Council on\u00a0Monday calling for an independent international investigation.<\/p>\n<div class=\"PostContent\" data-reactid=\"183\">\n<div data-reactid=\"184\">\n<p>The White House declined to answer questions from The Intercept about whether the U.S. has ordered its own investigation, saying only that it is supporting its allies in their individual probes. Germany, along with Denmark and Sweden, are each conducting <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/euobserver.com\/nordics\/156748\" >separate<\/a> investigations but say they are cooperating with one another.<\/p>\n<p>In a series of letters to European governments and the United States in February, made public by Moscow earlier this month,\u00a0Russian officials complained that they have been barred from examining evidence gathered from the sites where the blasts occurred. Despite Russia\u2019s majority ownership of the pipelines, Russian officials said, Germany, Denmark, and Sweden have rejected Russia\u2019s repeated requests for a joint investigation \u2014 confirming their \u201csuspicions that these countries are trying to conceal evidence, or to cover up the sponsors and perpetrators of these acts of sabotages.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Russia has been doing its own investigation into the sabotage, including underwater surveys. It has not, to date, released any forensic evidence to support its <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/ukraine-crisis-putin-nordstream-idAFS8N2Z80FZ\" >assertion<\/a> that \u201cAnglo-Saxon\u201d powers or the U.S. were behind the explosions. At a U.N. Security Council meeting in February, Russia\u2019s representative Vassily Nebenzia cited investigative journalist Seymour Hersh\u2019s report accusing the U.S. of carrying out the attack. \u201cThis journalist is telling the truth,\u201d he <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/news.un.org\/en\/story\/2023\/02\/1133752\" >said<\/a>. \u201cThis is more than just a smoking gun that detectives love in Hollywood blockbusters. It\u2019s a\u00a0basic principle of justice; everything is in your hands, and we can resolve this today.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div data-reactid=\"195\">\n<p>Denmark and Sweden\u00a0have cited procedural matters and national regulations as to why they aren\u2019t collaborating with Russia. But it\u2019s pretty obvious that they have also adopted the position that Russia should be viewed as a suspect in the sabotage and wouldn\u2019t want to invite it into the probe, particularly given Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine. It should be noted that Sweden also <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/europe\/sweden-shuns-formal-joint-investigation-nord-stream-leak-citing-national-2022-10-14\/\" >refused<\/a> an official joint investigation with its own allies from the onset, opting for a less formal cooperative arrangement. German officials have publicly confirmed their investigation into\u00a0a \u201cpro-Ukrainian\u201d group and its possible connection to the attack on the pipeline, but have also <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/siladityaray\/2023\/03\/08\/was-pipeline-sabotage-a-false-flag-to-blame-ukraine-german-defense-chief-raises-theory\/\" >cautioned<\/a> that it could be a \u201cfalse flag\u201d intended to conceal the sponsor.<\/p>\n<p>Russia\u2019s recent maneuvers signal that it\u00a0is becoming more aggressive in its rhetoric toward the two Scandinavian nations and Germany and is breaking some diplomatic protocols by making public its private communications with various nations. It is effectively arguing that the three national probes, which are backed by the U.S., are part of the Nord Stream bombing plot, and it wants to pull the U.N. in, where Russia would find a more neutral audience than NATO or the European Union.\u00a0The backdrop to all of this, of course, is the public display of Russia-China unity that\u2019s <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2023\/03\/23\/xi-putin-meeting-china-russia-undeclared-alliance\/\" >unfolded<\/a> over the past year, culminating with President Xi Jinping\u2019s recent visit to Moscow.<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>China, which is officially co-sponsoring the Russian resolution, has <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.scmp.com\/news\/china\/diplomacy\/article\/3211093\/china-calls-un-investigate-deliberate-sabotage-nord-stream-pipelines\" >said<\/a> it believes the attack was carried out by a state actor and that a U.N. investigation is needed to \u201cuncover the truth and identify those responsible.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Underwater Evidence?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Almost immediately after\u00a0the pipeline explosion on September 26, 2022, the Russian government asked the governments of Sweden, Germany, and Denmark to participate in their national investigations into \u201cdeliberate acts of sabotage\u201d against \u201cone of the most important investment projects of the Russian Federation.\u201d All three governments rejected Russia\u2019s requests, and Moscow has said that they are not sharing any meaningful information with Russian authorities.<\/p>\n<p>That position is hardly surprising given the war in Ukraine and the massive NATO and European weapons shipments aimed at defeating Moscow.\u00a0Russia\u2019s ambassador to Denmark, Vladimir Barbin, has been outspoken in his criticisms of the Danish government\u2019s refusal to cooperate with Russia. He has rejected speculation Russia was behind the attacks, saying that its ships did not have access to the waters where the explosives were placed. \u201cThe preparation of such attacks requires time and direct presence in the area of sabotage, which was carried out in the exclusive economic zones of Denmark and Sweden,\u201d Barbin\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/english.almayadeen.net\/news\/politics\/nord-stream-investigation-secrecy-raises-questions:-ru-amb-t\" >said<\/a>. \u201cThe Russian side, unlike the others, did not have permission for any underwater work or research in this area before the gas pipelines were blown up.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<blockquote class=\"Pullquote Pullquote--left\" data-reactid=\"196\">\n<div data-reactid=\"198\"><em><strong>Russia\u00a0is effectively arguing that the three national probes, which are backed by the U.S., are part of the Nord Stream bombing plot.<\/strong><\/em><\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div data-reactid=\"199\">\n<p>The sabotage of the Nordstream 1 and 2 pipelines occurred in the Baltic Sea waters stretching around the Danish island of Bornholm and extending to the southeast of the Swedish coast. The Russian enclave of Kaliningrad, nestled between Lithuania and Poland, is to the east of the area. The Nord Stream pipelines are majority-owned by Russia\u2019s state-run energy firm Gazprom.<\/p>\n<p>In contrast to Barbin\u2019s contentions, a new <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.t-online.de\/nachrichten\/deutschland\/aussenpolitik\/id_100149758\/nord-stream-sabotage-russian-tracks.html?utm_source=substack&amp;utm_medium=email\" >report<\/a> published by the German outlet T-Online, asserts that Russian vessels, possibly including a mini-submarine, were operating in the waters near the blast sites days before the sabotage. The article cites open-source satellite data and relied on information provided by an <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/oalexanderdk.substack.com\/p\/osint-analysis-six-russian-ships?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=1058092&amp;post_id=109751329&amp;isFreemail=true&amp;utm_medium=email\" >anonymous<\/a> \u201cintelligence source.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>On February 17, the Russian Foreign Affairs Ministry fired off\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/digitallibrary.un.org\/record\/4006612?ln=en\" >letters<\/a>\u00a0not only to Germany, Sweden, and Denmark, but also to the U.S. and Norway, charging\u00a0an apparent cover-up. On March 1, Russia submitted its correspondence with those nations to the U.N. Security Council as part of Moscow\u2019s push for the U.N. to initiate its own independent probe of the Nord Stream attack.<\/p>\n<p>The U.S., which opposes the resolution, has <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/news.un.org\/en\/story\/2023\/02\/1133752\" >portrayed<\/a> Russia\u2019s efforts to litigate the pipeline bombing at the security council as a \u201cblatant attempt to distract\u201d from its yearlong war in Ukraine. In a <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/digitallibrary.un.org\/record\/4004095\" >joint letter<\/a> submitted to the council in late February, Germany, Sweden and Denmark claimed, \u201cRussian authorities have been informed regarding the ongoing investigations,\u201d adding that the three nations \u201chave been in dialogue regarding the investigation of the gas leaks, and the dialogue will continue to the relevant extent.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div data-reactid=\"201\">\n<p>On February 21, a Gazprom-contracted ship doing a survey discovered an antenna-like device that Russia alleged might be a component of the materials used in the sabotage of the pipeline or part of a triggering mechanism for an unexploded bomb on an underwater pipe. \u201cSpecialists believe it might be an antenna to receive a signal to detonate an explosive device that could have been \u2014 I\u2019m not certain, but it\u2019s possible \u2014 planted under the pipeline system,\u201d said Russia\u2019s President Vladimir Putin in an\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/tass.com\/russias-foreign-policy\/1588759\" >interview<\/a>\u00a0with Russian television on March 14. \u201cIt appears that several explosive devices were planted,\u201d Putin said, adding, \u201cSome of them went off, and some didn\u2019t. The reasons are unclear.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He also alleged that the device was discovered attached to an undersea pipe junction\u00a0on the only string of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline where no explosion was registered last September.<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\u201cWe would like to receive permission from the Danish government [to] conduct the necessary examination either on our own, or jointly with them,\u201d Putin said. \u201cBetter yet, establish an international group of experts and bomb engineers that could work at a depth like that. And if need be, to defuse the explosive device, of course, if there is one down there.\u201d Putin said his government had made discreet inquiries to the Danish authorities proposing a joint effort. \u201cTheir response was ambiguous,\u201d he said. \u201cTo put it bluntly, there was really no answer at all. They said that [we] need to wait.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Denmark\u2019s government ultimately confirmed that there was an object in the area identified by the Russians and that it was investigating. There was a flurry of activity in late March \u2014 with Danish military vessels and diving ships\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AndreasLindqv10\/status\/1638119807127109633\" >congregating<\/a>\u00a0in the waters around the site identified by the personnel aboard the Glomar Worker, the ship that reportedly found the suspicious object. On March 21, the Danish newspaper Berlingske\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.berlingske.dk\/samfund\/rusland-vi-har-fundet-spor-af-sabotage-paa-oestersoeens-intakte-gasledning\" >reported<\/a>\u00a0that Russia believes the \u201cantenna\u201d was \u201cpart of a device from an explosive charge on the last of the four Nord Stream gas pipelines.\u201d Only three of the lines were successfully damaged in the sabotage, and it has confounded researchers why one was left intact. \u201cIt is a cylindrical object about 30 centimeters high and 10-15 centimeters in diameter and was located approximately 28 kilometers from the explosion site,\u201d Barbin\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.berlingske.dk\/samfund\/rusland-vi-har-fundet-spor-af-sabotage-paa-oestersoeens-intakte-gasledning\" >said<\/a>\u00a0in a statement to Berlingske. \u201cIt was installed at a welding joint on the B line.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>On March 23, the Danish Energy Agency released a\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/ens.dk\/presse\/haandtering-af-objekt-i-oestersoeen\" >photograph<\/a>\u00a0of an object roughly fitting the dimensions offered by Russia. The object appeared to\u00a0have been\u00a0submerged for a long time and was covered by a layer of algae or other foliage. \u201cIt is possible that the object is a maritime smoke buoy,\u201d asserted the Danish statement. Such devices are commonly used to mark an area where someone has gone overboard or to alert other ships to a problem. The government agency said it had invited the owners of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, effectively Russia, to participate in the salvage.\u00a0The Kremlin labeled the Danish invitation \u201cpositive news.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s possible that the Danish government was essentially trolling the Russians by posting the photo and making a public offering to allow Russia to participate in the retrieval of what Denmark alleged is a harmless civilian device but that Moscow implied was potentially an unexploded bomb.<\/p>\n<p>In its initial news report on the Danish invitation to Russia to participate in retrieving the object, the\u00a0Russian<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>state-owned TASS\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/tass.com\/economy\/1593791\" >news agency<\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>did not mention the possibility it was a \u201csmoke buoy,\u201d instead doubling down on Russian theories it may be a component of an unexploded device. \u201cIt is critically important to determine what kind of object it is, whether it is related to this terrorist act \u2014 apparently it is \u2014 and to continue this investigation,\u201d\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/europe\/kremlin-important-identify-object-found-next-nord-stream-pipeline-2023-03-24\/\" >said<\/a>\u00a0Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov on March 24. \u201cAnd this investigation must be transparent.\u201d Denmark has said \u201cthe object does not pose an immediate safety risk.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That chapter of this story appears to have ended with a whimper rather than a bang. \u201cI do not think it makes sense for us to get into that now, since one of the NATO countries, or Denmark, told us that they had already examined it, which means that the situation is not explosive,\u201d Putin told a Russian news network on May 25, adding that it no longer\u00a0was necessary\u00a0for Russian specialists to participate in a retrieval operation. \u201cHonestly speaking, for us, the point was not to incriminate someone, but to ensure security so that there would be no other explosions,\u201d he said. \u201cIf the Danes say that it is no longer explosive, well, thank God.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In a recent op-ed in the Danish newspaper\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.altinget.dk\/artikel\/ruslands-ambassadoer-i-danmark-rusland-udelukkes-fra-opklaringen-af-nord-stream-sabotagen\" >Altinget<\/a>, Barbin, the Russian ambassador, accused Denmark of engaging in speculative analysis since the explosion last September with an aim to assign blame for the attack. In Danish media, some prominent\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=hk-0qJXyido\" >military analysts<\/a>\u00a0have spent considerable time discussing potential\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=EeP_ZZbBIl4&amp;t=4s\" >Russian<\/a>\u00a0culpability for blowing up its own pipeline. Barbin asserted that this \u201cintellectual exercise, without presenting facts that should be verifiable, leads to a dead end and benefits only those who are afraid of the truth.\u201d He said Denmark should provide an update to a variety of questions: \u201cWhich naval vessels \u2014 including military ships \u2014 were present in the sabotage area?\u00a0Are there any witnesses who have been questioned and what is their testimony? Were fragments of broken gas pipelines raised and what are the results of their research?\u00a0Which companies \u2014 especially foreign ones \u2014 were allowed to work in Denmark\u2019s and Sweden\u2019s exclusive economic zone, and were their activities audited?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>These are all fair questions, which may well be answered once the governments complete their probes. Denmark and Sweden have both remained tightlipped, and scant details have leaked from either government. While there are likely multiple layers contributing to the hyper-secrecy, the stakes are obviously high, particularly if evidence leads to a nation-state actor, such as the U.S., Russia, or Ukraine, as the perpetrator.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"img-wrap align-bleed large-bleed width-auto\" data-reactid=\"202\">\n<div data-reactid=\"203\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-424747\" src=\"https:\/\/theintercept.imgix.net\/wp-uploads\/sites\/1\/2023\/03\/GettyImages-1474161898.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;q=90\" alt=\"DRANSKE, GERMANY - MARCH 17: In this aerial view the Andromeda, a 50-foot Bavaria 50 Cruiser recreational sailing yacht, stands in dry dock on the headland of Bug on Ruegen Island on March 17, 2023 near Dranske, Germany. According to media reports, German investigators searched the boat recently and suspect a six-person crew used it to sail to the Baltic Sea and plant explosives that detonated on the Nord Stream pipeline in September of 2022, causing extensive damage. Investigators reportedly found traces of explosives on the table inside the yacht. While initial findings point to a possible Ukrainian connection to the sabotage operation, many questions remain open. (Photo by Sean Gallup\/Getty Images)\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"caption overlayed\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>The Andromeda, a 50-foot recreational sailing yacht, which German investigators searched recently and suspect a six-person crew used it to sail to the Baltic Sea and plant explosives, seen on March 17, 2023 near Dranske, Germany.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"caption source pullright\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Photo: Sean Gallup\/Getty Images<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-reactid=\"204\">\n<h2>False Flag vs. \u201cFalse Concoctions\u201d<\/h2>\n<p>In the public discourse, Seymour Hersh\u2019s <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/seymourhersh.substack.com\/p\/how-america-took-out-the-nord-stream\" >report in February<\/a>\u00a0that the Nord Stream pipeline was blown up in a covert operation authorized by President Joe Biden has become something of a Rorschach test in the broader context of the war in Ukraine and the hostilities between the U.S., NATO, and Russia.<\/p>\n<p>Hersh himself\u00a0appears entirely unfazed by the mounting attacks on his credibility. This, he asserts, is what powerful forces do: They seek to destroy the messenger to distract from the crime. When pressed on some of the criticism of his reporting, including apparent inconsistencies raised by open-source data on ship and aircraft movements during the alleged operation, Hersh has cut his questioners short and asserted that he hasn\u2019t even published 20 percent of what he knows or what his sources have told him. He has all but said that he\u00a0used\u00a0additional sources and is playing his own game of cat and mouse to protect them. Moreover, he has argued, these OSINT warriors<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>are naive to believe that the CIA and other U.S. agencies would not have taken extensive steps to cloak\u00a0the operation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div data-reactid=\"257\">\n<p>At 85 years old, Hersh is staking his storied and well-earned reputation as one of the premiere muckrakers in modern U.S. history on the veracity of this one story. It may appear to be a crazy gamble, particularly if it is based on a single source, but it also serves as a powerful symbol of how right Hersh believes he is. In essence, Hersh is forcing the question: Do we really believe Sy Hersh would do this if it wasn\u2019t true?<\/p>\n<p>This same dynamic has played out with several of Hersh\u2019s stories over the past decade since he left the New Yorker. It was\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/nymag.com\/intelligencer\/2015\/05\/how-solid-is-this-story-on-the-bin-laden-raid.html\" >true<\/a>\u00a0of his 2015\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.lrb.co.uk\/the-paper\/v37\/n10\/seymour-m.-hersh\/the-killing-of-osama-bin-laden\" >story<\/a>\u00a0for the London Review of Books alleging that President Barack Obama and his administration lied about almost every detail of the raid on Osama bin Laden\u2019s compound. And it was also the\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.justsecurity.org\/9085\/seymour-hershs-bite-apple-syrian-chemical-weapons-conspiracy-2-0\/\" >case<\/a>\u00a0with both his 2013 LRB\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.lrb.co.uk\/the-paper\/v35\/n24\/seymour-m.-hersh\/whose-sarin\" >article<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0his 2017\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.welt.de\/politik\/ausland\/article165905578\/Trump-s-Red-Line.html\" >story<\/a>\u00a0for the German newspaper Welt <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.salon.com\/2017\/06\/30\/seymour-hersh-casts-doubt-on-reported-syrian-gas-attack_partner\/\" >asserting<\/a> that the U.S. was falsely accusing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and the Syrian army of using chemical weapons. Hersh\u2019s detractors say he is not the journalist he once was and is peddling false theories based on dubious or fictional assertions from anonymous sources. Hersh maintains he got these stories right and that he continues to use the same quality of fact-checker, editor, and lawyer he had reviewing his work at the New Yorker.<\/p>\n<p>In his most recent\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/seymourhersh.substack.com\/p\/the-cover-up?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=1377040&amp;post_id=109842336&amp;isFreemail=false&amp;utm_medium=email\" >post<\/a>\u00a0on Substack, Hersh criticizes reports in the New York Times and multiple German media outlets that among the perpetrators of the sabotage was a \u201cpro-Ukrainian group\u201d that rented a private boat using false passports. Hersh alleged that the entire story, based on anonymous U.S. intelligence and German law enforcement sources, was a false-flag operation and that the assertions published by the Times and Die Zeit \u201coriginated with a group of CIA experts in deception and propaganda whose mission was to feed the newspaper a cover story\u2014and to protect a president who made an unwise decision and is now lying about it.\u201d Hersh writes:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><em>\u201cIt was a total fabrication by American intelligence that was passed along to the Germans, and aimed at discrediting your story,\u201d I was told by a source within the American intelligence community. The disinformation professionals inside the CIA understand that a propaganda gambit can only work if those on receiving are desperate for a story that can diminish or displace an unwanted truth. And the truth in question is that President Joe Biden authorized the destruction of the pipelines and will have a difficult time explaining away his action as Germany and its Western European neighbors suffer as businesses are shuttered amid high day-to-day energy costs.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Hersh also asserted that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz\u2019s visit to the White House in early March was, in part, aimed at preparing the rollout of the cover story developed by the CIA and its German counterparts. \u201cI was told by someone with access to diplomatic\u00a0intelligence that there was a discussion of the pipeline expos\u00e9\u00a0and, as a result, certain elements in the Central Intelligence Agency were asked to prepare a cover story in collaboration with German intelligence that would provide the American and German press with an alternative version for the destruction of Nord Stream 2,\u201d Hersh writes.\u00a0\u201cIn the words of the intelligence community, the agency was \u2018to pulse the system\u2019 in an effort to discount the claim that Biden had ordered the pipelines\u2019 destruction.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<blockquote class=\"Pullquote Pullquote--right\" data-reactid=\"258\">\n<div data-reactid=\"260\"><em><strong>Hersh is staking his storied and well-earned reputation as one of the premiere muckrakers in modern U.S. history on the veracity of this one story.<\/strong><\/em><\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div data-reactid=\"261\">\n<p>For people who have already concluded that Hersh is either fabricating this story or relying on bad sources, his latest story is\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/OAlexanderDK\/status\/1638825572783587328\" >evidence<\/a>\u00a0that he\u00a0is trapped in a hall of mirrors and seeing\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/EliotHiggins\/status\/1638815644400451585\" >conspiracies<\/a>\u00a0in every direction he looks. Holger Stark, the lead reporter on the German story Hersh claims was the product of a CIA deception campaign,\u00a0addressed Hersh in\u00a0a <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/holger_stark\/status\/1638561100009549829\" >tweet<\/a>:<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\u201cSy, old colleague, I admire your historical work and it hurts tremendously to say it: But this is, at least in respect to our work at Die Zeit, complete BS. And if you write about me: call next time before you publish. You would avoid a lot of mistakes.\u201d Stark has collaborated with The Intercept on an\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/theintercept.com\/2015\/04\/17\/ramstein\/\" >investigation<\/a>\u00a0into the U.S. drone program and\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.spiegel.de\/politik\/deutschland\/ramstein-air-base-us-drohneneinsaetze-aus-deutschland-gesteuert-a-1029264.html\" >Germany\u2019s role<\/a>\u00a0and was one of the main German journalists reporting on Edward Snowden\u2019s National Security Agency documents for\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.spiegel.de\/thema\/nsa_spying_scandal_en\/p7\/\" >Der Spiegel<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>For those who believe that Hersh has correctly identified the perpetrator of the Nord Stream bombing \u2014 the U.S. government \u2014\u00a0it is plausible\u00a0that the information fed to the Times and German news outlets about the \u201cpro-Ukrainian group\u201d is suspicious and part of a deception operation. Last June \u2014 two months before the Nord Stream explosions \u2014 the CIA reportedly\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2022\/09\/27\/world\/europe\/cia-nord-stream-pipelines-attack.html\" >offered\u00a0<\/a>German intelligence and other European governments a \u201cstrategic warning\u201d of a potential plot to blow up the pipeline. According to the\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/in-nord-stream-probe-german-investigators-search-boat-that-may-have-carried-explosives-379505f9\" >Wall Street Journal<\/a>, \u201cThe warning included information about three Ukrainian nationals who were trying to rent out ships in countries bordering the Baltic Sea, including Sweden.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It could well be that the U.S. was simply sharing its intel with allies with a direct stake in such an action. It could also be that this is where a potential deception operation involving a \u201cpro-Ukrainian group\u201d began. What does not seem likely is that the cover story was created in response to Hersh. More plausible, if this is indeed a cover story, was that it was planned long before Hersh wrote his story and was designed to deceive or misdirect U.S. allies and the world about who was responsible. Stark, the German journalist who heads Die Zeit\u2019s investigative unit, said he had been working on his <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.zeit.de\/politik\/ausland\/2023-03\/nordstream-2-ukraine-anschlag\" >story<\/a>, based on the German criminal probe, for months and rushed to publish only after he learned the New York Times was going to post its \u201cpro-Ukraine group\u201d <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/03\/07\/us\/politics\/nord-stream-pipeline-sabotage-ukraine.html\" >story<\/a>, which was based on the claims of anonymous U.S. intelligence operatives. Hersh later updated his piece to reflect this.<\/p>\n<p><u>In his latest<\/u>\u00a0story, Hersh lambasted the U.S. press corps for refusing to ask the White House about his assertions the U.S. blew up the pipeline. \u201cThere is no evidence that any reporter assigned there has yet to ask the White House press secretary whether Biden had done what any serious leader would do: formally \u2018task\u2019 the American intelligence community to conduct a deep investigation, with all of its assets, and find out just who had done the deed in the Baltic Sea. According to a source within the intelligence community, the president has not done so, nor will he. Why not? Because he knows the answer.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I asked the White House Hersh\u2019s specific question and also for comment on Hersh\u2019s assertions about the private meeting between Biden and Scholz and the CIA manufacturing a cover story. In a statement, National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson did not directly address any of my questions. \u201cThese stories are totally false concoctions,\u201d Watson said.\u00a0\u201cWe can say categorically that the United States was not involved in the Nord Stream explosions in any way. We continue to support efforts with our allies and partners to get to the bottom of what happened.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>During Secretary of State Antony Blinken\u2019s appearance before the House Committee on Appropriations on March 23, Rep. Brad Sherman, a California Democrat,\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.c-span.org\/video\/?c5063543\/user-clip-rep-sherman-asks-blinken-nord-stream-sabotage\" >asked<\/a>\u00a0Blinken: \u201cYou\u2019re now in a formal setting. Can you assure the world that no agency of the U.S. government blew up those pipelines or facilitated that action?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes, I can,\u201d Blinken replied.<\/p>\n<p><b>Update: March 25, 2023, 8:00 p.m. ET<\/b><\/p>\n<p><em>This piece has been updated with comments made by Putin on March 25 saying Russia would not retrieve the underwater object.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>______________________________________________<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\"><em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/jeremy-scahill-e1676265801573.png\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-124647\" src=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/jeremy-scahill-300x157.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"78\" \/><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/theintercept.com\/staff\/jeremy-scahill\/\" class=\"Post-contact-link Post-contact-link--name\"  data-reactid=\"279\"><em>Jeremy Scahill<\/em><\/a><em><a class=\"Post-contact-link\" href=\"mailto:jeremy.scahill@theintercept.com\" data-reactid=\"280\"> &#8211; jeremy.scahill@\u200btheintercept.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/theintercept.com\/2023\/03\/25\/nord-stream-russia-investigation-seymour-hersh\/?utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=The%20Intercept%20Newsletter\" >Go to Original &#8211; theintercept.com<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>25 Mar 2023 &#8211; Moscow claims Germany, Denmark, and Sweden are engaged in a U.S.-backed cover-up, as the war to control the narrative \u2014 and the evidence \u2014 intensifies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":232374,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[82],"tags":[550,1035,1014,1268,755,1126,1050,2462,2941,91,2937,1301,112,818,253,278,3009,880,961,124,2200,95,70,1594,481,172],"class_list":["post-232373","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-united-nations","tag-corruption","tag-eastern-europe","tag-energy","tag-european-union","tag-gas","tag-hegemony","tag-imperialism","tag-military-industrial-media-complex","tag-multipolar-world-order","tag-nato","tag-nordstream-2","tag-nuclear-war","tag-pentagon","tag-proxy-war","tag-putin","tag-russia","tag-seymour-hersh","tag-state-terrorism","tag-ukraine","tag-united-nations","tag-us-empire","tag-us-military","tag-usa","tag-war-economy","tag-warfare","tag-west"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232373","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=232373"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232373\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":232376,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232373\/revisions\/232376"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/232374"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=232373"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=232373"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=232373"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}