After an hour, the diversions on the Nord Stream gas pipelines have not yet been discovered

Journalists of the German NDR, WDR, rbb, ARD, SWR, Süddeutsche Zeitung and Die Zeit newspapers with the help of international partners Expressen, frontatory.pl, Delfi and NOS/Nieuwsuur on the anniversary of the sabotage of the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines published the results of a joint investigation into the explosions.

In general, the data of the investigation correspond to the available data of the investigation conducted by the German police. However, even an hour later, the list of suspects remains quite extensive and unconfirmed. All of them, according to the investigation, are Ukrainian citizens. Most of them deny their involvement in sabotage.

The Federal Criminal Police Department and the Federal Police of Germany have already identified several persons who participated in the rental of the yacht “Andromeda” in Rostock. According to the investigators, it was used to carry out sabotage in September last year. Traces of explosives were found on board the yacht.

An important role in this version is played by the method of renting a yacht through a Polish company. Thanks to Ukrainian legal documents, it was possible to establish that the trail leads to Kyiv businessman Rustem A. He responded to the request of the German mass media by refusing to communicate and denied his involvement in sabotage. He did not respond to the official request of the mass media.

Judging by the new information of the investigation, the letter to the yacht rental company was sent by Ukrainian citizen Maksym B. by e-mail. The suspect works in a marine company that receives orders from the government of Ukraine. In a telephone conversation with journalists, he rejected all suspicions. He emphasized that he did not participate in the lease of “Andromeda”. “I don’t know anything about it,” the Ukrainian claims.

At the same time, the investigation claims that Maxim B. sent copies of two fake passports – Romanian and Bulgarian – to rent the yacht. Journalists spoke with the brother and grandmother of Valery K., who is depicted in the photo of the Romanian passport in the name of Stefan Marku. They confirmed that Valery K. was not at home for a long time. In a conversation with German investigators, Valery K. also denied his involvement in sabotage. German special services believe that his personal data was stolen.

The Bulgarian passport was issued in the name of Mikhail Popov, also a non-existent person. The man with this passport was registered in Poland as a yacht crew member. The German special services established that their mobile phones had previously been intercepted in Ukraine.

Before the explosions, the rented yacht, according to journalists, was moored in Denmark, Poland and Sweden. Five men and one woman were on board “Andromeda”. It has not yet been proven how much explosive material was on the yacht.

The authorities of Ukraine do not respond to requests and deny their involvement in sabotage. Polish special services deny the possibility of using “Andromeda” for sabotage.

Theoretically, as journalists note, the so-called false flag operation, which could be carried out by Russia with the aim of discrediting Ukraine, is also possible. However, so far the German special services have no specific indications for this. It is also emphasized that “Ukrainian trace” does not mean that the Ukrainian government is behind the sabotage.