Ukrainian SOF and Zaluzhnyi could not have blown up Nord Stream, says former SBU employee
The Ukrainian Special Operations Forces and Ukrainian Commander-in-Chief General Valerii Zaluzhnyi could not have been involved in blowingup the Nord Stream gas pipeline, former SBU security service employee and military expert Ivan Stupak said on Radio NV on Nov. 13.
"Mr. Zaluzhnyi is in charge of the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” Stupak said.
Read also: Nord Stream pipeline sabotage beneficial only to Russia, says ex-Ukrainian FM
“He is the Commander-in-Chief, he oversees all operations in Ukraine. While the Special Operations Forces conduct missions on Ukrainian territory, including occupied areas and the contact line, they do not handle external operations. Zaluzhnyi lacks the authority, manpower, and financial resources for such operations."
Stupak says special operations abroad are carried out by intelligence services, not Zaluzhnyi.
Read also: The West has finished its investigation into the Nord Stream bombing — so why won’t it name Russia?
The former SBU employee said out that a similar operation would require anywhere from a few thousand to several hundred thousand euros, as well as connections with the criminal world to obtain cover documents or producing them at the highest level.
"Passports, driver’s licenses, and funds for air travel,” Stupak added.
“You fly by plane, you stay in a hotel for several days, you rent a yacht. If it was a group operation, it wasn't done in one go. First they had to arrive, then assess the situation. Then figure things out, dive, measure the thickness of the box around these gas pipelines to protect them from the anchors of various ships. This operation is complex and costly."
He also stressed the difficulty of transporting half a ton of explosives in the European Union, which would have to be illegally transported in small batches of two kilograms.
The former SBU employee said that attempts are being made to link Ukraine to the Nord Stream sabotage to portray Chervinskyi and Zaluzhnyi as saboteurs.
"Those trying to spin this narrative aim to depict our military as aggressive and uncontrollable, engaging in operations that violate EU laws – moving explosives, using fake passports and driver's licenses,” Stupak said. “(They want to accuse Ukrainians of) blowing up large objects, causing great economic damage to the European Union, the European community, and also endangering the lives and health of European citizens."
On Nov. 11, U.S. newspaper the Washington Post, citing official sources in Ukraine and other European countries, reported that Ukrainian Special Operations Forces Colonel Roman Chervinskyi played a central role in sabotaging the Russian Nord Stream gas pipeline. The article claims that Chervinskyi received orders from higher-ranking officials subordinate to Zaluzhnyi, possibly without President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's knowledge of the special operation.
Chervinskyi's lawyer Viktor Vasylyuk told Radio Free Europe on Nov. 13 that he was very surprised by the publication about his client’s alleged involvement, stating that Chervinskyi is confident "there can be no evidence of his involvement in this case."
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