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BRUSSELS, Oct. 5 (AP) The head of the European Union’s executive agency on Wednesday vowed to inspect critical EU infrastructure, including energy, after a suspected breach of a Baltic gas pipeline.
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“We need to stress test our infrastructure,” von der Leyen told the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France.
“We need to determine if we have weaknesses and where those weaknesses are.” She also said satellite surveillance will be used to detect potential threats.
Amid Russia’s seven-month war against Ukraine and Western military support for the Ukrainian government, last week’s undersea explosion ruptured the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines built to transport natural gas from Russia to Germany of.
As member states oversee energy and other infrastructure within the EU, von der Leyen said her security push would involve national capitals.
“We will work with member states to ensure effective stress testing of the energy sector,” she said. “Then other high-risk industries should follow, such as offshore digital and power infrastructure.”
The Danish and Swedish governments said hundreds of pounds of explosives were used last week to damage two pipelines at two locations near Sweden and two locations near Denmark. The leak releases large amounts of methane into the air.
“These bombings must be viewed in the light of the deteriorating security situation in Europe. We have every reason to believe that they were sabotage,” Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde said on Wednesday. “At the moment, we cannot determine which actor is responsible.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday accused the West of attacking the pipeline, which the United States and its allies have vehemently denied.
Danish authorities said two spills they were monitoring in international waters had stopped over the weekend. A leak in Sweden also appears to be over.
The Swedish Coast Guard said on Wednesday that the remaining leak from the Nord Stream 2 pipeline was “slightly small” and “gives the impression of a reduction”.
Sweden has already deployed a vessel capable of advanced diving above the leak, but it is unclear when divers or submarines will be launched to check.
A Swedish Coast Guard vessel was on site 24/7 monitoring marine traffic in the area.
The Swedish prosecutor’s office and the Swedish Security Service are investigating. Copenhagen Police are in charge of the investigation in close cooperation with the Danish Energy Authority, the National Police and the Danish Police Intelligence Service.
Also in Strasbourg on Wednesday, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell predicted that 27 EU governments will agree to new sanctions on Russia in response to Russia’s illegal annexation of about 15 percent of Ukraine’s territory. four regions.
The planned new penalties include a price cap on Russian oil, restrictions on EU exports of aircraft parts to the country and restrictions on Russian steel imports. EU diplomats are aiming to approve the new package in Brussels as soon as Wednesday.
The new penalties build on unprecedented European sanctions against Russia due to Russia’s war on Ukraine since February.
EU measures so far have included restrictions on energy supplies from Russia, a ban on financial transactions with Russian entities including the central bank, and an asset freeze on more than 1,000 people and more than 100 entities. (Associated Press)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from the Syndicated News feed, the body of the content may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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