The explosions that tore through Russia’s pipelines to Europe are still causing rifts years on

A gas leak at Nord Stream 2 as seen from the Danish F-16 interceptor on Bornholm, Denmark September 27, 2022. Danish Defence Command/Forsvaret Ritzau Scanpix/Reuters Paris —

It was a late September night when muffled blasts and a stream of bubbles broke the surface of the Baltic Sea. Explosions had ripped through the two Nord Stream gas pipelines, Russia’s gas highway into Europe, months after Moscow’s full invasion of Ukraine. Years later, shockwaves from that night are still rippling across the continent.

The 2022 attack on the hugely controversial pipelines triggered an international whodunnit, with suspicion falling immediately on Russia and even the US being forced to deny involvement.

Today, intrigue continues to swirl around the blasts even as Germany readies a prosecuti