Nord Steam theory says hired yacht bomber delivered explosives over scenic German port

A yacht chartered by six mysterious operatives with fake passports, an explosive device delivered to the crew in the middle of the night, and a mysterious organization outside of state control.

These are the building blocks of a compelling new theory that is beginning to emerge about the unsolved bomb attack on the $20 billion Node Stream 1 and 2 pipelines on September 26, 2022.

The massive explosion caused an estimated $500 million in damage, and this major infrastructure network built to transport gas from Russia to Western Europe, will ever be repaired. The attack sparked an ongoing blame game between Moscow and the West as international authorities struggle to track down the perpetrators.

Investigators have set their sights on a 50-foot sailing yacht named Andromeda as a key piece of the puzzle. The Andromeda left a German port in early September with six of her people, who rented a boat using high-quality forged passports, and traveled directly over the site of the explosion.

In another interesting twist, the giant oil tanker Minerva Julie circumnavigated a section of the sea eerily close to the region for a full week, around the same time as Andromeda’s voyage. was it more than a coincidence?”

Investigators have set their sights on this 50-foot sailing yacht named Andromeda as a key piece in the mystery of who attacked the Nord Stream pipeline. The yacht uses fake identification and he is hired by six people to travel around the Baltic Sea bomb site.

Andromeda’s journey coincided with Minerva Julie (pictured) spending a week circumnavigating the waters near where the Nord Stream attack occurred.The owner said he was simply “awaiting instructions for the next voyage”.

The Andromeda left the German port of Rostock on September 6th. Six unidentified people rented this boat. The person presented fake identification and told staff at her yacht owner, Mola Yachting GmbH, that she was planning a cruise around the Baltic Sea.

According to German officials, boat rentals were covered by a company registered in Poland. The company is believed to be controlled by Ukrainian owners.

A day after leaving Rostock, the boat arrived in Vik, a much smaller German port town about 60 miles northeast.

German officials believe it was here that the yacht’s crew received the explosives used to blow up the pipeline. They speculate that the bomb was delivered to the crew in a white van at night when surveillance cameras were unoccupied at the port.

Investigators, suspecting that more operatives had arrived to aid in the mission that night, searched Andromeda in late January and found traces of explosives inside.

Vik Harbor Superintendent Lenny Redman said he had no idea of ​​the half-dozen crew who had arrived by yacht. When he was contacted by authorities in January and asked to hand over the logs from the port, he realized something was wrong.

It is not known exactly how long the Andromeda remained on Vik before continuing its journey.

From there, however, the crew moved further northeast into the Baltic Sea, towards an area of ​​water above where the Nord Stream pipe had been attacked 80 meters below the surface.

What happened next is not entirely clear. The boat was small enough that it was not equipped with the tracking equipment found on larger commercial ships.

The boat arrived at Vik on 7 September. It is speculated that the bomb was delivered to the crew in a white van during the night when surveillance cameras were unattended in the harbor.

Minerva Julie tracking data shows it spent about a week in the area where the explosion occurred.The owner said he was simply “awaiting instructions for the next voyage”.

What is known is that Andromeda eventually docked again in mid-September on the tiny Danish island of Christians, ten miles from the larger Bornholm island and a few miles from the bomb site.

Danish police contacted Christiansø’s administrator, Søren Thiim Andersen, in December, seeking information on ships that had called at major Danish ports between 16th and 18th September. Police also told Andersen to ask residents of the island to provide the photos and videos they took. Port of those dates.

The whole journey continued for about two weeks before the Andromeda returned to Rostock. A few days later, the bomb exploded, severely damaging the pipeline and releasing tens of thousands of tons of methane gas.

Investigators are now trying to piece together how the mysterious crew aboard the Andromeda may have carried out the attack during their travels. explosives, agreeing that a highly trained and well-funded crew is required. There is also controversy that such missions can be carried out from a five-cabin rental yacht.

The mystery was further complicated when an oil tanker named Minerva Julie traveled for a week in September.

The 600-foot-long Greek-flagged tanker headed east from Rotterdam when it spent seven days, 5-13 September, pausing in the Baltic Sea.

The ship’s owner, Minerva Maritime, said on March 10 that the ship was simply “awaiting instructions for its next voyage.”

Oliver Alexander, an open source intelligence analyst who analyzes Andromeda’s movements in detail, speculates: sub stack A yacht could have transported the team and supplies to the Minerva Julie, and was a much better-equipped vessel for such a mission.

US intelligence agencies recently said a pro-Ukrainian group may have carried out the attack.Russian President Vladimir Putin says America is to blame

Russia has also been accused of carrying out the Nord Stream gas explosion. Explanations range from divers to spy submarines to underwater drones, and one possible motive is to cripple Europe’s winter energy supply.

A report by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh claimed that the United States was responsible for the Node Stream pipeline attack. A Navy diver allegedly planted the explosives in June as a cover for NATO exercises. It is then claimed to have exploded remotely in September.

Investigators and some intelligence officials also consider the view that the perpetrators were not acting on behalf of the state.In other words, they had no government or military power and resources behind them. bottom.

Allegations were added last week. American intelligence officials say pro-Ukrainian The group may have carried out the attack without the knowledge of President Volodymyr Zelensky or his government.

The Andromeda-centric theory is the latest to unfold how the attack was carried out and who was responsible.

A sensational and highly controversial February report by Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist Seymour Hersh said: A specialized US Navy submersible team carried out the attack During a top secret mission overseen by President Joe Biden.

The White House and CIA flatly rejected the report, branding it “complete fiction.”

Russia has blamed the United States for the attack, and President Vladimir Putin said last week that speculation that Ukraine was responsible was “absolute nonsense”. said he was in debt. Britain has also been criticized by Russia before.