“Thank you, USA” – this was the tweet posted by the former head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Radosław Sikorski, under a photo related to the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas leaks. When asked about the suggestion made by Sikorski that the US was behind the explosions in the Baltic Sea, US State Department spokesman Ned Price said: “It is nothing more than a function of Russian disinformation and should be treated as such.”
“The idea that the United States was in any way involved in the apparent sabotage of these pipelines is preposterous. It is nothing more than a function of Russian disinformation and should be treated as such,” Price said when asked about the suggestion by former Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski and Senator Ted Cruz that the US may have been behind the Nord Stream pipeline explosions.
Russia has a long history of spreading disinformation—and is doing it again regarding the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines. @StateDeptSpox responded clearly to this disinformation during today’s press briefing. pic.twitter.com/YzcBW3n84M
— Department of State (@StateDept) September 28, 2022
“When it comes to the contingency planning that we’ve engaged in for the potential use of a nuclear weapon by Russia in Ukraine, we have spoken very clearly of the implications for Russia were that to happen. We’ve used a number of adjectives. We have said there would be catastrophic, severe, strong, profound implications for Russia. All of those are accurate. We are – we stand by all of those descriptors. The point that we have made both publicly and privately to the Russians is that the consequences would be real, and they would be extraordinary,” he added.
Price said that the sabotage thesis was indicated by conversations between US diplomatic chief Antony Blinken and national security adviser Jake Sullivan with their Danish counterparts. He added that the US is sharing information and assisting in the investigation.
The spokesman at the same time declined to speculate on whether he would treat an attack on NS as an Article V attack on NATO.
“That is a hypothetical perhaps wrapped within another hypothetical, so I just wouldn’t want to entertain it at this point,” he stated.
Asked whether he agreed with Polish Foreign Ministry chief Zbigniew Rau that, in the event of a Russian nuclear strike on Ukraine, the NATO response should be “conventional but devastating,” Price said that the US had notified Russia publicly and privately that it would face “catastrophic, severe, strong, profound implications for Russia.”