Denmark has dropped its investigation into the explosion that ruptured the Nord Stream natural gas pipeline in September 2022 due to the lack of evidence to pursue a criminal case.
Bloomberg reports that Danish intelligence and Copenhagen police concluded there was "deliberate sabotage of the gas pipelines" but that there were no "sufficient grounds to pursue a criminal case" in a joint statement Monday.
This decision, which they said was "both complex and comprehensive" and involved cooperation from "relevant foreign partners," comes after its neighboring country, Sweden, dropped its preliminary investigation earlier in February after finding the attack did not involve Sweden or its citizens.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov called the statement from Danish officials "borderline absurd."
"On the one hand, there is an admission that deliberate sabotage took place, but on the other, there is no further progress," he said.
The pipeline was the main source for transporting Russian natural gas to Germany via the Baltic Sea. It delivered 55 billion cubic meters of gas annually at peak capacity.
The explosion damaged both strings of Nord Stream 1 and two strings of Nord Stream 2 near the island of Bornholm in Eastern Denmark.
An investigation into the explosion still remains open in Germany.
Bloomberg reports that Danish intelligence and Copenhagen police concluded there was "deliberate sabotage of the gas pipelines" but that there were no "sufficient grounds to pursue a criminal case" in a joint statement Monday.
This decision, which they said was "both complex and comprehensive" and involved cooperation from "relevant foreign partners," comes after its neighboring country, Sweden, dropped its preliminary investigation earlier in February after finding the attack did not involve Sweden or its citizens.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov called the statement from Danish officials "borderline absurd."
"On the one hand, there is an admission that deliberate sabotage took place, but on the other, there is no further progress," he said.
The pipeline was the main source for transporting Russian natural gas to Germany via the Baltic Sea. It delivered 55 billion cubic meters of gas annually at peak capacity.
The explosion damaged both strings of Nord Stream 1 and two strings of Nord Stream 2 near the island of Bornholm in Eastern Denmark.
An investigation into the explosion still remains open in Germany.
