NEW DELHI: Though it has been unable to resolve the destruction of the Nordstream gas pipeline from Russia to Germany, NATO nevertheless is “determined” to respond if the cause of damage to a pipeline that runs between its members Finland and Estonia is proven to be a deliberate attack, said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg ahead of a NATO meeting on Wednesday.
Called the ‘Balticconnector’, a leak in the pipeline was confirmed on Tuesday by one of the pipeline operators, Finland’s Gasgrid, which had noted a drop in pressure and possible leak on Sunday night during a storm.
Russia, which suffered heavily when the Nordstream pipeline was sabotaged in September 2022, said the incident was “disturbing”. American scribe Seymour Hersh had alleged that the US had led the operation to render Nordstream inoperable.
Meanwhile, later at NATO meeting of 50 defence ministers in Brussels, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a pitch for military aid to fight Russia. United States Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said both Israel and Ukraine will be supported.