Russia Summons Germany, Denmark, Sweden Envoys Over Nord Stream Investigation

Facts

• Russia's foreign ministry has summoned the ambassadors of Germany, Sweden, and Denmark to protest over the results of investigations into the blasts that damaged the Nord Stream gas pipelines last year.¹
• Moscow called the lack of cooperation with Russia "unacceptable." According to Moscow's foreign ministry, the three countries have, on a number of occasions, ignored notes from Russian embassies, as well as appeals from the Russian government to launch open investigations.²
• Russia's foreign ministry also said in a statement that the three countries showed no interest in establishing the truth, and accused them of slow-walking the result and attempting to bury the identity of the perpetrator.³
• The US and NATO have called the Nord Stream explosions "an act of sabotage by an unknown actor," but Russia has blamed the West for the blasts. Russia's foreign ministry said on Thursday: "It is no coincidence that 'leaked' improbable versions [of events] are dumped in the media to try to muddy the waters."⁴
• It added that Moscow will keep trying to ensure that the three nations conduct their investigations objectively and that Russia participates. In March, the UN Security Council rejected a Moscow-drafted resolution calling for an independent investigation into the sabotage.⁵
• In February, American journalist Seymour Hersh published an extensive report claiming that the US destroyed Russia's pipeline. Though Washington called it "utterly false," Vladimir Putin "fully agreed" with Hersh's findings.⁶

Sources: ¹Guardian, ²TASS, ³Reuters, ⁴DW, ⁵Al Arabiya English, and ⁶RT.

Narratives

• Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by US News & World Report. The Russian foreign ministry has repeatedly urged these three countries to share information about the progress of their separate investigations into the Nord Stream sabotage, but they have refused. It should be clear to everyone that the US and its allies are doing all they can to obstruct independent investigation into what happened in the Baltic Sea last September.
• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Reuters. Germany, Sweden, and Denmark have been informing Russian authorities on all progress in their separate investigations. These probes are still ongoing, and there is no date set when they will be concluded. The three countries' authorities will continue with this transparent dialogue despite unfounded criticism from Moscow.

Predictions