US supporting Europe after Nord Stream leaks
The United States said on Tuesday it was ready to help European allies on energy security after leaks were detected on the Nord Stream pipelines and said it was assessing whether sabotage was to blame. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States was looking at reports that the leaks were "the result of an attack or some kind of sabotage". "If it is confirmed, that's clearly in no one's interest," Blinken told reporters. "My understanding is the leaks will not have a significant impact on Europe's energy resilience," Blinken said. But he added: "What's critical is that we are working day in day out, both on a short term basis and a long term basis, to address energy security for Europe and, for that matter, around the world." He pointed to US efforts to step up shipments of liquified natural gas since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine as US allies, notably Germany, tried to reduce their reliance on Russian energy. US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan later tweeted that he had spoken to his "counterpart Jean-Charles Ellermann-Kingombe of Denmark about the apparent sabotage of Nord Stream pipelines". "The US is supporting efforts to investigate and we will continue our work to safeguard Europe's energy security," he added. A White House official earlier said that "we stand ready to provide support" to Europeans after the leaks. Ukraine accused Russia of causing the leaks on the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines, saying the alleged actions amount to "nothing more than a terrorist attack". Photographs taken by the Danish military showed large masses of bubbles on the surface of the Baltic Sea, while Sweden's seismological institute reported underwater blasts. (AFP)