Magdalena Andersson cited the investigation’s confidential nature while suggesting Moscow could conduct its own inquiry
A gas leak on the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline as seen from above on September 29, 2022, Swedish economic zone in the Baltic Sea © AFP / Handout/Airbus DS 2022/AFP
Sweden will not share the results of its investigation into the explosions that severely damaged the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines in late September with Russia, Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson has said.
The Swedish authorities say they have found evidence that points to sabotage. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Moscow already knows who the main beneficiary of the attack is.
Speaking to journalists on Monday, Andersson explained that “In Sweden, our preliminary investigations are confidential, and that, of course, also applies in this case.”
She noted, however, that Russia can conduct its own probe at the site if it so wishes, as Stockholm has removed cordons from the area.
“The Swedish economic zone is not a territory that Sweden disposes of,” Andersson clarified.
Her counterpart in Moscow, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin urged Stockholm to allow Russian authorities and state-owned energy giant Gazprom participate in the investigation.
Commenting on the situation during a meeting of the Russian Security Council on Monday, President Vladimir Putin said that despite the denial of access to the investigation, “we all know well who the ultimate beneficiary of this crime is.”
Earlier, Putin accused “the Anglo-Saxons,” a Russian colloquialism for the US-UK alliance, of being behind what Moscow described as an “act of international terrorism.”
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken hailed the attack as a “tremendous opportunity” for Europe “to once and for all remove the dependence on Russian energy.”
The Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines abruptly lost pressure on September 26, following a series of powerful underwater explosions off the Danish island of Bornholm. The ruptures led to massive gas leaks and made them inoperable.
