On Tuesday, the New York Times reported that new US intelligence indicates that a "pro-Ukrainian group" of saboteurs perpetrated the attack on the Nord Stream natural gas pipelines running between Russia and Germany last year.
According to the unnamed officials, those responsible for the attack were most likely Russian or Ukrainian nationals, or "a combination of the two" standing in opposition to Russian Pres. Vladimir Putin. However, the intelligence review provided no details about the "members of the group, or who directed or paid for the operation."
The mysterious "intelligence" leaked to the Western media is clearly a deliberate media campaign to divert the public's attention after Pulitzer Prize-winning US journalist Seymour Hersh published his report proving that Washington is behind the attacks on European critical infrastructure. However, the wild speculations that are now mushrooming ultimately point to one thing: The need for an independent and transparent investigation to identify and finally punish the real perpetrators.
The new findings are explosive, yet it is too early to jump to conclusions, as the attack on the pipelines could also have been a false flag operation to blame Ukraine and discredit it among its Western allies. Moreover, the new evidence suggests that the Ukrainian government had nothing to do with the blasts, and the investigations by Germany, Sweden, and Denmark will eventually reveal the truth. Until then, the West and Ukraine must remain united in the fight against the Russian invasion.