Moscow Mulls Holding Independent Investigation of Nord Stream Sabotage in Denmark

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia will study the possibility of holding an independent investigation of the terrorist attacks on the Nord Stream pipelines, the Russian Embassy in Copenhagen said on Friday.

On Wednesday, Denmark and Sweden stated that they plan on excluding Russia from the investigation of the situation of the incidents at the Nord Stream gas pipeline.

"Limiting the circle of the [investigation] participants to states that are either already NATO members or on the way to acceding to this alliance, turns the investigation into a politically biased one. In these circumstances, the Russian side will explore the possibility of conducting an independent comprehensive investigation at the scene," the statement said.

Moscow does not exclude the possibility of repairing the Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines, which were damaged as a result of sabotage, but a decision on this can be made after an inspection of the scene, according to the embassy.

"The Russian side does not exclude the possibility of repairing gas pipelines, but a decision on this can be made after an inspection of the scene and assessment to the extent of damage caused to gas pipelines is made," the embassy added.

In this picture provided by Swedish Coast Guard, a small release from Nord Stream 2 is seen, Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2022

© Photo : Swedish Coast Guard

Russia is the most affected party in the current situation with the incident at the Nord Stream pipelines because Gazprom, as the owner of the gas pipelines, suffered significant damage, the diplomatic mission said.

"Deliberate sabotage was committed against gas pipelines, which are one of the most important objects of Russia's energy infrastructure. Russia in this case acts as the most affected party. The owner of these gas pipelines is the Russian company Gazprom. Its property has suffered significant damage," the embassy said.

The embassy stressed that the terrorist attack against gas pipelines is also a blow to the prospects of using these lines to supply Russian gas to Europe and preserve energy cooperation between Europe and Russia.