C.I.A. Told Ukraine Last Summer It Should Not Attack Nord Stream Pipelines

C.I.A. Told Ukraine Last Summer It Should Not Attack Nord Stream Pipelines - The New York Times

Supported by
Continue reading the main story

C.I.A. Told Ukraine Last Summer It Should Not Attack Nord Stream Pipelines

Dutch intelligence officials shared information with the C.I.A. in June 2022 that they had learned the Ukrainian military had been planning an operation using divers to blow up one of the pipelines.

The Central Intelligence Agency told Ukrainian officials last summer that it had learned of what it thought was an aborted plot by the Ukrainians to attack the Nord Stream pipelines, and the agency reinforced its objection to any such operation.

In June 2022, Dutch intelligence officials shared information with the C.I.A. that they had learned the Ukrainian military had been planning an operation using divers to blow up one of the pipelines, according to U.S. and European officials. But the original tip by the Dutch, according to a U.S. official, was that Ukraine had already reconsidered and canceled the operation.

In reality, American officials now believe, the operation was not aborted but delayed, potentially with a different Ukraine-aligned group carrying out the attack.

Explosions destroyed parts of the pipelines, which carry natural gas from Russia to Europe, in September. The Ukrainian government denied responsibility for the attack.

But German investigators later learned that a group of Ukrainians had rented a boat, loaded it with explosives and attacked the pipeline. American intelligence agencies now believe the operation was carried out at least with the loose direction of the Ukrainian government, but they do not know who exactly planned the operation.

The information about the C.I.A. warning to Ukraine, and that it was Dutch intelligence officials who provided the original intelligence, was earlier reported by the German news outlet Die Zeit and NOS, the Dutch national broadcaster.

It is unclear which U.S. official delivered the message about the pipeline attack to Ukraine. It was not delivered by senior level officials, however, because the United States already believed that Kyiv had reconsidered the wisdom of the attack, according to the American official. It was also not clear how the Ukrainians responded to the Americans’ message.

The original warning collected by Dutch intelligence included details similar to the final operation, but it also differed in some key respects, according to the European official. The original intelligence said Ukraine intended to attack Nord Stream 1, whereas the actual attack was against both the older pipelines and the just-completed set, known as Nord Stream 2.

Dutch intelligence also reported that the plan would involve using fake Estonian passports, the European official said. At least some members of the group that European investigators believe carried out the attack used fake Bulgarian passports.

The original plan also involved using Ukrainian special forces personnel to rent a submersible and a boat to attack the pipelines, near a spot popular with divers, the European official said.

The C.I.A. was not able to corroborate the information the Dutch provided them last summer but nevertheless warned the German government that the pipelines could be attacked and then discussed the matter with Ukrainian officials.

Julian E. Barnes is a national security reporter based in Washington, covering the intelligence agencies. Before joining The Times in 2018, he wrote about security matters for The Wall Street Journal. @julianbarnes•

Michael Schwirtz is an investigative reporter with the International desk. With The Times since 2006, he previously covered the countries of the former Soviet Union from Moscow and was a lead reporter on a team that won the 2020 Pulitzer Prize for articles about Russian intelligence operations. @mschwirtz•

Our Coverage of the War in Ukraine
The Future of Ukraine: The European Union and
NATO have promised a path to membership for the country. But real partnership will hold risks and benefits.
Photos: Photographers with The New York Times and other news organizations
have been chronicling the war, capturing a slice of how soldiers and civilians have experienced it. Our photographers say some images will never leave them.
Western Companies: Hundreds of Western businesses
are still in Russia. Some say Moscow has tied their hands, while others have chosen to stay put.
Defying Isolation: After the invasion of Ukraine, the West
tried to cut Russia off from the rest of the world. But wealthy Russians continue to rely on a network of middlemen to circumvent the restrictions.
A Wartime Partnership: The alliance between President Biden and President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine has
become critical to the world order.
Zelensky’s Rise: The Ukrainian president, once brushed off as a political lightweight,
has become a household name, representing his country’s tenacity.

How We Verify Our Reporting
Our team of visual journalists analyzes satellite images,
photographs, videos and radio transmissions to independently confirm troop movements and other details.
We monitor and authenticate reports on social media, corroborating these with eyewitness accounts and interviews.
Read more about our reporting efforts.