Every week, Moritz Koch, head of the Handelsblatt office in Brussels, analyzes trends and conflicts, regulatory projects and strategic concepts from the inner workings of the EU. Because anyone interested in business needs to know what’s going on in Brussels. You can reach him at: [email protected]
The announcement came close to a letter of confession. A few days ago, the Russian energy company Gazprom announced that a tube had been miraculously spared when the Nord Stream pipelines exploded in the Baltic Sea.
Line B of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline could continue to deliver natural gas to Europe, indicated Gazprom. The Europeans would only have to give permission: “If the decision is made to start deliveries via the B branch of Nord Stream 2, gas will be pumped into the pipeline after the integrity of the system has been checked and verified by the regulators.”
What a coincidence. Ironically, Nord Stream 2, the Baltic Sea pipeline that served Russia to divide Europe, now offers the last remaining option for direct gas supplies from Russia to Germany. You don’t need to study secret service dossiers to deduce a strategic calculation.
Nord Stream 2 is supposed to make the trembling Germans weak: The Kremlin hopes that the German government will break away from the European sanctions front and agree to a new energy pact with Russia if entire branches of industry get into trouble in winter and the protests on the streets swell.
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Nobody in Europe believes in an accident anymore. The explosions on the bottom of the Baltic Sea appear to have been a targeted attack on Europe’s energy infrastructure. An attack that was most likely ordered in Moscow.
>> Read here: Putin attacks Kyiv: All developments on the Ukraine war in the news blog
Even more amazing than the audacity of the Russians is the obtuseness of the Europeans. Where is the reaction to the obvious sabotage? The pipeline strings were not blown up on Russian territory, but off the coasts of Sweden and Denmark. The line is not owned by Russia either, it was co-financed by European companies like Wintershall.
“Even more astonishing than the audacity of the Russians is the stubbornness of the Europeans. Where is the reaction to the obvious sabotage?”
This makes the act of destruction a case for NATO. Alliance defense ministers are meeting this Wednesday and Thursday at Brussels headquarters. In addition to the Russian retaliatory attacks on Kyiv and the danger of a further escalation of the Ukraine war, the security of Europe’s critical infrastructure will dominate the talks.
Germany is the main target of hybrid warfare
The federal government would be well advised to take the initiative and request an emergency meeting under Article 4 of the North Atlantic Treaty. This article, not to be confused with the case of alliance governed by Article 5, states: “The parties will consult each other if, in the opinion of either party, there is a threat to the integrity of the territory, to the political independence or to the security of either party.” This point is in the confrontation with the Russian regime.
“The faster the Berlin coalition partners realize that there are more important issues than the gleanings from the Lower Saxony elections, the better.”
The faster the Berlin coalition partners realize that there are more important issues than the gleanings from the Lower Saxony elections, the better. Germany is the main target of the Kremlin’s hybrid warfare in Europe.
Cyber attacks on energy companies are increasing, especially on German ones, the well-known consulting firm Macro Advisory Partners warns in a confidential report. Federal police and state security are investigating the suspicion that an attack, possibly carried out by a state actor, was responsible for disrupting rail traffic on Saturday.
It’s time for Europe to send a warning signal to Moscow: we can put two and two together and are ready to defend ourselves. Otherwise, the Europeans invite Russia to further acts of sabotage.
More: “The threat is growing” – How endangered is the critical infrastructure in Germany