MOSCOW, Sept 9 (Askume) – The Kremlin said on Monday that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz wanted a thorough investigation into the 2022 Nord Stream gas pipeline attack, calling reports that some Western powers were trying to cover up the truth correct.
In an interview with German television over the weekend, Scholz said the Berlin investigation would ensure nothing was hidden and would do everything possible to ensure those responsible for the bombing were punished.
Moscow has repeatedly complained that Germany did not take sufficient steps to investigate the September 2022 explosion that ruptured the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines built to carry Russian gas to Europe under the Baltic Sea.
But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Monday welcomed Scholz’s latest comments.
“We completely agree that the terrorist attacks and the destruction of Nord Stream must be thoroughly investigated, even if some of the countries involved tried desperately to cover it up,” Peskov told reporters on Monday, without naming the countries he accused of covering up the matter.
“This (concealment) should not be allowed under any circumstances,” he said.
No one has claimed responsibility for the blast, seven months after Russia sent thousands of troops into Ukraine.
Moscow has repeatedly said without providing evidence that the attack was carried out by the United States and Britain, but both countries have denied the allegations.
German prosecutors said last month they had issued an arrest warrant for a Ukrainian diving instructor in Poland in connection with the attack .
Polish prosecutors said they had received an arrest warrant from Germany but the suspect had left the country because Berlin had not included his name in its wanted criminal database.
Separately, when asked by reporters on Monday about Scholz’s proposal for a peace plan in Ukraine , Peskov said Moscow did not know the details.
