The Chinese ship that may have been responsible for the Balticconnector pipeline damage belongs to a company founded two days after the sabotage of Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines, raising suspicions of links as part of a larger false flag operation – writes Wojciech Jakóbik, editor – in-chief at BiznesAlert.pl.
The media are full of speculation about the sabotage of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines on September 26, 2022. The investigation into this matter is still pending. Western politicians have warned that it could be part of a false flag operation that leaves a trail diverting attention from the real perpetrators.
Meanwhile, unknown perpetrators are circling Europe and causing more incidents in the energy sector. The latest is the failure of the Balticconnector gas pipeline that runs from Estonia to Finland, the youngest NATO member, that had joined in the Alliance in response to Russia’s attack on Ukraine. A gas pipeline and two telecommunications cables from Sweden and Estonia were damaged. The perpetrators have not been identified, but Finnish police have revealed that the damage might have been caused by a ship NewNew Polar Bear that travels under the Hog Kong flag. As long as the investigation continues, we are left with speculation, as in the case of the sabotage of Nord Stream 1 and 2.
Nevertheless, an open sources intelligence investigation conducted by internet users established more facts about the NewNew Polar Bear. Estonia and China are supposed to work closely together on the investigation into the Balticconnector damage, but that doesn’t mean Beijing has to be to blame. It turns out that the owner of this Chinese ship is New New Shipping. It was founded on October 28, two days after the sabotage of Nord Stream 1 and 2, and is a subsidiary of the Russian company Torgmoll specializing in deliveries via the Arctic. Before it allegedly damaged the Balticconnector, it was docked at a port in the Kalliningrad oblast.
If the investigation traces the Balticconnector sabotage to Russia again, it will only make the claim that a Russians did take part in the NS 1 and 2 sabotage stronger. Allegedly a woman with a Russian passport took part in renting the Andromeda yacht in Poland to plant the bombs under the pipes, while the Danish armed forces noticed the Russian navy was conducting strange maneuvers near the blast area.
Finding the perpetrators behind the attacks on EU and NATO critical infrastructure is key for the West’s security after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It is not accidental that these incidents reinforce cooperation to protect such infrastructure. The destruction of the Balticconnector has ramped up protection of installations as remote as pipes from Africa to Italy, which reveals the scale of threat before the coming winter season during which Europe needs broad access to fossil fuels from outside Russia. This also applies to Polish gas pipelines (such as the Baltic Pipe), oil pipelines (such as the Pomerania oil pipeline), the LNG terminal, the Naftoport and more.
We should keep an eye on the Baltic because it’s still in the crosshairs.