I could just see it now, James Bond, agent 007, called before his fictional boss "M" at Mi6, Britain's much vaunted Secret Intelligence Service.."Mr. Bond, it appears someone has blown up some important pipelines, and we think it's the Russians, but we're not sure.."We want you to investigate, and find out who did this — and if possible, do a bit of wet work.".The latter being a euphemism for murder or assassination..It's a dirty business, but someone has to do it..And of course, what follows is a huge underwater Thunderball speargun battle between the forces of good and evil, somewhere in the Baltic Sea, off the coast of Denmark.. Thunderball's thrilling underwater battle.Thunderball's thrilling underwater battle. .OK, so much for my 007 imagination, but that's the way it's looking in the aftermath of the Nord Stream pipeline mystery..Even the great Ian Fleming couldn't come up with a story like this..According to media reports, an investigative team examining multiple explosions that rocked the Nord Stream pipeline network found "detonations" damaged the lines as suspicion of sabotage remain high.. Pipeline mapPipeline map .In what could have been the largest methane leak in history, four sites along the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipeline have been examined by Danish and Swedish authorities after first being discovered last week.."There have been detonations near Nord Stream 1 and 2, within the Swedish economic zone, resulting in extensive damage to the gas pipelines," Swedish security police said in a statement reported by Reuters..The area is no longer being cordoned off and the leaks have stopped, but authorities have said the investigation remains ongoing as some material needs additional analysis.."The continued investigation will show whether anyone can be suspected of, and later prosecuted for, this crime," the statement to Reuters continued..Both Moscow and Western nations have pointed fingers at one another over what some have described as intentional "sabotage.".NATO, meanwhile, accused Russia of targeting the pipelines in "deliberate, reckless and irresponsible acts of sabotage.".Russia, who has accused the US of using underwater "robots" to target the pipelines, has already said it will not acknowledge the results of any investigation it is not directly involved in.. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry PeskovKremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov ."We were informed via diplomatic channels that as of now, there are no plans to ask the Russian side to join investigations," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, according to the Reuters report..Peskov said the Kremlin did not believe an investigation that did not involve Russia could be objective..The Americans claim Russia has the most to gain in wreaking havoc on Europe's energy markets..The Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines have been at the centre of geopolitical tensions as Russia cut gas supplies to Europe in suspected retaliation against Western sanctions imposed after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine..Danish authorities said the two methane leaks they were monitoring in international waters stopped over the weekend. One of the leaks off Sweden also appeared to have ended..According to TheConversation.com, the subsea is an ocean space that is often forgotten, yet increasingly vital. Pipelines ensure the flow of gas and oil..Electricity cables across Europe and the Mediterranean are key to the green energy revolution. Underwater data cables transport 95% of data and ensure digital connectivity..Yet Europe has no policy in place that would provide for the surveillance and protection of this underwater infrastructure. Europe is effectively subsea blind..The explosions also took place in international waters in the Baltic Sea, meaning they cannot be construed as a direct attack on any NATO member, which could have triggered the alliance’s mutual-defense agreement, The Washington Post reported..US military analysts say the attack looks very much like an attempt to take revenge on countries that have backed Ukraine — a signal to them that more expensive energy supply disruptions might be coming — while preserving plausible deniability..Russia, meanwhile, says that Washington stood to benefit from the incidents at Nord Streams, with the US able to increase prices and sales of liquefied natural gas (LNG)..There is much speculation, but no ironclad proof — at least not yet..I guess we'll just have to see if Commander Bond can solve this one — no one else seems to be able to definitively determine who was responsible.
