The UN Security Council debated Russia’s request for a UN-led inquiry into the September explosions along the Nord Stream pipelines on Tuesday. The USA is “not interested” in an independent investigation of the attack on the Nord Stream pipeline, Russia charged at the UN Security Council Tuesday. “The problem is that the Americans are simply lying”, said Russian Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.
After the first round of discussions at the UN Security Council, Russian UN Ambassador Vasily Nebenzya said he has “the impression Western experts are not interested in an unbiased international investigation. This, of course, only aggravates our suspicions.” The United States has veto power in the Security Council and will presumably shoot down Russia’s resolution asking for an independent Nord Stream investigation.
“We are not here to set up a trial in the Security Council”, Nebenzya said. He said Moscow was presenting a request for an independent investigation in light of doubts about the integrity and transparency of Denmark, Germany and Sweden in their ongoing inquiries. Nebenzya said the UN Secretary-General António Guterres “is someone we trust” to lead an investigation into the Nord Stream attack.
“We have strong reasons to doubt the effectiveness, transparency, and impartiality of investigations that are being carried out under some national jurisdictions,” Nebenzya said Tuesday. “We do not see our partners being eager to cooperate.”
There was “proof that explosives had been planted” during a NATO exercise in June 2022, Nebenzya said, referring to the recent bombshell report by reporter Seymour Hersh claiming Washington was the culprit.
“This journalist is telling the truth,” Nebenzya told Council members. “This is more than just a smoking gun that detectives love in Hollywood blockbusters. It’s a basic principle of justice; everything is in your hands, and we can resolve this today.”
US Ambassador John Kelley said “today’s meeting is a blatant attempt to distract” from the one-year anniversary of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022. “That is what our focus should be on,” Kelley said. “Russia desperately wants to change the subject.” Russia is “abusing its position as a Council member” for using this platform to air internet conspiracy theories.
The US administration realizes that no one believes it had nothing to do with the Nord Stream attack, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.
“The Americans claim they “had nothing to do” with the explosions of the Nord Stream pipelines even though the findings by renowned investigative reporter Seymour Hersh are widely available,” she wrote on her Telegram channel late on Tuesday. “We know that they know that everyone knows that this is a lie.”
“The problem is not that “the US” is the only logical answer to the oldest question in legal practice, Cui bono (who benefits?) that makes any sense; the problem is that the Americans are simply lying.”