German official ridicules Russia’s attempt to revisit Nord Stream 2 issue

“Russia has offered this multiple times. In this case, I could only say: ‘nice try,’” Hoffmann said, repeating the phrase in Russian, with a smile (the spokeswoman had long worked as a journalist in Moscow).

She recalled that Russian gas has not been supplied to Germany for a long time not because Nord Stream 1 was damaged, but because Russia simply did not want to supply it, finding various reasons for this, including political ones. Currently, Germany and other countries assume that Russia is not a reliable supplier, and this does not depend on which pipes they are talking about.

Regarding the causes of the accident on the “Nord Stream” pipes, Berlin’s opinion remains unchanged. It was “a deliberate act of sabotage”, although the Federal Republic of Germany refrains from naming the culprits. “We assume that this is deliberate sabotage, and everything points to it,” Hoffmann said.

The investigation into the incident will be handled by a Joint Task Force, which includes experts from Denmark, Sweden, and Germany, but Germany has yet to formally approve its involvement. As for Russia’s expressed desire to join the work of the Group, Berlin does not comment on this, as it’s Denmark and Sweden that are to decide.

At the end of September, incidents occurred on both branches of the main gas pipeline Nord Stream 1, while one of the two branches of Nord Stream 2 was also damaged. NS2 certification had earlier been suspended due to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine in February. Russian monopoly Gazprom once again declared its readiness to resume gas supplies to Europe, but through the only branch of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which survived the incident.