A series of leaks on two natural gas pipelines running from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea are raising concerns a sabotage may have occurred..Seismic stations in the countries of Sweden, Norway and Finland registered two explosions Monday near the leaks on the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines. Bjorn Lund, a seismologist with Uppsala University, said the first explosion was recorded in the early hours southeast of the Danish island of Bornholm. A second, stronger blast that night happened northeast of the island. The latter explosion was the equivalent of a magnitude-2.3 earthquake..Nord Stream AG said it was impossible to estimate when the gas network system's working capability would be restored. "The destruction that occurred on the same day simultaneously on three strings of the offshore gas pipelines of the Nord Stream system is unprecedented," the Nord Stream consortium said..The pipelines are not currently moving gas to Europe, due to reduced Russian exports in response to western sanctions over the Russia-Ukraine War. But oil is still within the pipelines, raising the risk of localized environmental damage..Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen earlier said she "cannot rule out" the theory the pipeline may have been sabotaged.."We are talking about three leaks with some distance between them, and that's why it is hard to imagine that it is a coincidence," she said..Polish Prime Minister Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, meanwhile, called the events "an act of sabotage."."The era of Russian domination in the gas sphere is coming to an end," Morawiecki declared, calling it "an era that was marked by blackmail, threats and extortion.".Ever since the EU implemented economic sanctions on Russia, the country's state-owned energy company Gazprom has been slowly reducing the supply of energy to Western Europe. The company has cited "maintenance issues" as a justification for reducing the flow of gas..In early September, Gazprom shut down the pipeline completely, claiming it needed to conduct urgent maintenance work to repair key components. Days later, the company said it would be shutting off supply indefinitely. .European countries, which are heavily reliant on Russia for gas, are bracing for severe energy shortages this winter. With energy prices skyrocketing and homes and businesses being forced to reduce their energy usage, there are concerns that the continent could slide into an economic depression..READ MORE: German city of Hanover brings in strict energy-saving measures.Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the gas leaks "very alarming."."This is an unprecedented situation that requires an urgent investigation. We are extremely worried by this news," he said in a conference call with reporters..When he was asked if the accident may have been caused by an act of sabotage, Peskov said that "no version could be excluded."
