Swedish military takes another look at Nord Stream blasts

Stockholm, Oct 27: Sweden's Armed Forces said on Wednesday it had begun new inspections in the Baltic Sea at the sites of suspected explosions that ruptured the Nord Stream pipelines last month.

"The Swedish Armed Forces are this week carrying out complementary seabed surveys at the gas leaks with minesweepers," the armed forces said on Twitter. "The investigation is done at our own initiative and is not part of the police investigation."

Military officials did not want to be drawn into what sparked the new probe. "I can't comment on what we are looking for, why we are there; but we had the need to come back to do an additional search," a spokesperson for the military said.

Swedish prosecutors and police earlier this month wrapped up a crime scene investigation with the help of the navy and coast guard.

Nord Stream 'explosions' caused damage

Both Sweden and Denmark have concluded that "powerful explosions" had caused "extensive damage" to pipelines bringing gas from Russia to Europe.

The four leaks detected at the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines have caused major environmental concerns as well as compounded issues for Europe's increasingly tight energy supply.

The Nord Stream pipelines were already at the center of political tensions prior to the leaks. Moscow cut natural gas supplies to Europe in a suspected retaliation for sanctions against Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

European leaders believe the leaks are the result of sabotage and have said Moscow is to blame.

The Kremlin has, in turn, blamed Washington, saying the US was trying to ensure EU reliance on the US as an energy partner instead of Russia. The administration of US President Joe Biden has categorically denied this claim.

Source: DW