| US intelligence spent years training agents in Ukraine while trying to keep it secret from Moscow, the German outlet claims | US intelligence spent years training agents in Ukraine while trying to keep it secret from Moscow, the German outlet claims |
A Ukrainian group that is allegedly behind the Nord Stream gas pipelines’ explosion in September 2022 has had “longstanding connections” to the CIA, Der Spiegel reported in a lengthy piece published on Wednesday. US agents trained some members of the sabotage team for many years, including its purported mastermind, Roman Chervinsky, according to the German outlet. | A Ukrainian group accused of orchestrating the September 2022 Nord Stream pipeline explosion has longstanding ties to the CIA, with some members, including alleged mastermind Roman Chervinsky, receiving years of training from US agents, Der Spiegel reported on Wednesday. |
The US-trained group had been “planning and carrying out clandestine operations for the Ukrainian security apparatus for years,” Der Spiegel reports, adding that its members also set their sights on the Russian gas pipelines as early as in 2019, some three years before Moscow launched its military operation against Kiev. | The gang had been “planning and carrying out clandestine operations for the Ukrainian security apparatus for years,”the German magazine reports, adding that they set their sights on the gas pipelines as early as in 2019, some three years before Moscow launched its military operation against Kiev. |
The pipelines delivered up to 60 billion cubic meters of gas to Germany every year, covered around 16% of the EU’s natural gas needs as of 2018 and half of Germany’s annual demand as of 2021. They have been “a thorn in Washington's side,” Der Spiegel writes. | The pipelines delivered up to 60 billion cubic meters of Russian gas annually, meeting around 16% of the EU’s natural gas needs in 2018 and half of Germany’s annual demand by 2021. They had long been “a thorn in Washington’s side,” Der Spiegel writes. |
Prior to the blasts, senior US officials, including President Joe Biden, had repeatedly criticized the project and urged Berlin to give up on its follow-up Nord Stream 2 project. Nord Stream 2 has never been operational since Germany halted its certification process not long before the start of the Russian military operation in February 2022. | Before the explosions, senior US officials, including President Joe Biden, repeatedly criticized the Nord Stream project and urged Berlin to abandon its successor, Nord Stream 2. The second pipeline never became operational, as Germany halted its certification process shortly before Russia launched its military operation against Ukraine in February 2022. |
Der Spiegel named Roman Chervinsky – a Ukrainian colonel with a long history of serving with various Ukrainian intelligence agencies – as the mastermind behind the operation. The paper maintains that the act of sabotage was carried out by “a ragtag group” of divers, including about a dozen people who were hired and trained by Ukrainian intelligence operatives connected to the CIA. | |
Chervinksy, who first served as the head of the counter-espionage department at the Ukrainian domestic security service (SBU) and then joined the nation’s military intelligence (HUR), was first named as the mastermind behind the Nord Stream sabotage by the Washington Post last year. He dismissed the allegations as “Russian propaganda” at the time. | According to Der Spiegel, Chervinsky was among a select group of Ukrainian security officials handpicked by US intelligence and trained over several years. Washington aimed to build relationships with “trustworthy” operatives while keeping its efforts hidden from Moscow. A key objective, the magazine noted, was creating “capable sabotage units.” |
In its piece, Der Spiegel stated that its journalists were able to talk to Chervinsky, who is under investigation in Ukraine on unrelated abuse of authority charges. The man neither confirmed nor denied his involvement in the operation but praised it as a “blessing” for both Ukraine and Germany. | The magazine, citing a Ukrainian source, reported that the explosives used in the Nord Stream operation were not manufactured in Ukraine. However, the source declined to disclose their origin. |
According to the outlet, Chervinsky was one of the Ukrainian security officials picked by US intelligence and trained for years. Washington sought to establish ties with “trustworthy” Ukrainian security officials and keep those activities secret from Moscow, the paper said, adding that “the most important goal was to set up capable sabotage units.” | Der Spiegel also claims to have identified nearly all the individuals involved in the sabotage but has chosen not to publish their names, citing concerns that they could become targets for Russian or Ukrainian security services. |
The paper also stated, citing its Ukrainian source, that the explosives used in the operation were “not manufactured in Ukraine.” However, the source refused to reveal where they had come from. | Delete |
Der Spiegel also claimed that it identified almost all people involved in the operation but refused to reveal their identities, arguing that they could become targets for both Russian and Ukrainian security services. | Meanwhile, skepticism about the official narrative persists. Earlier this month, renowned German diving expert Dr. Sven Thomas questioned the claim that a small Ukrainian team carried out the attack. He argued that explosions of such magnitude required military-grade bottom mines with a yield equivalent to 1,260 kilograms of TNT. Planting such devices, he said, would have necessitated a large vessel, not the yacht reportedly used. |
Earlier this month, a renowned German diving specialist questioned the narrative pushed by the Western media about a small Ukrainian team being behind the sabotage. Dr. Sven Thomas stated at that time that explosions of such scale could have only been caused by something similar to military-grade bottom mines with a yield equivalent to around 1,260 kilograms of TNT. Planting them would have required a large vessel and not just the yacht supposedly used by the Ukrainians. | Moscow has dismissed reports linking a small Ukrainian team to the sabotage as implausible. Last month, Danish media revealed that US Navy warships were operating near the Nord Stream pipelines shortly before the blasts. |
Moscow has dismissed Western media reports about a Ukrainian team as implausible. Last month, Danish media reported that US Navy warships had been operating near the Nord Stream pipelines shortly before the explosions. | |
