Renowned American economist Jeffrey Sachs caused a stir during a live interview on television. Bloomberg broadcaster moderators wanted to slow him down and confront him with critical questions, but the director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University in New York was not angry and convinced: the US was behind the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines.
Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin suspects so, as does former Polish Defense Minister Radoslaw Sikorski and now Sachs: Those state actors who attached explosive charges with hundreds of kilograms of explosive force to and detonated gas supply pipelines in the Baltic Sea are likely the US, possibly supported by the British and the Poles.
Moderator: “Jeff, we need to pause now”
Sachs is considered controversial because he has repeatedly defended Russian positions since the start of the war in Ukraine and is highly critical of the role of the US. In an interview with the news channel Bloomberg, he caused bewilderment in the studio. “I bet that was a US move — maybe the US and Poland,” said the 67-year-old, who also works as an adviser to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. “Jeff, Jeff, we need to stop at this point. That’s a pretty big statement. Why do you think that?” the moderator immediately intervened and asked what evidence the economist had for this.
Sachs initially stated that there was radar imagery showing US military helicopters, which were actually stationed in Gdansk (Danzig), circling over the site of the damage – before the underwater blasts. The 67-year-old also referred to a statement by US President Joe Biden ahead of the outbreak of war in Ukraine, which is currently hotly debated on social media. At the time, Biden said in a joint press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz that if Russia invaded Ukraine, the Nord Stream 2 project would be over (see video below). “Then there will be no more Nord Stream 2. We’re going to put an end to this,” Biden said. When asked by a reporter how the United States would like to do this, the US head of state assured: “I promise you, we will be able to do it.”
Flashing the US “IOU”?
Last but not least, Sachs referred to statements by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken last week. In a press conference on Friday, he emphasized that the Nord Stream explosions proved to be a “great opportunity”. The US is now the main supplier of liquefied gas to Europe. Commentators saw this as more or less an “acknowledgment of guilt” by the US. For Sachs, it’s also “a strange way of talking.”
Area around leaks cordoned off for investigation
The sea area around the four leaks at the Nord Streampipelines has since been closed for investigation. In the investigation into suspected serious sabotage, the Swedish prosecutor’s office has decided to cordon off the area to investigate the crime scene, prosecutor Mats Ljungqvist said Monday evening. Because an investigation is only just beginning, he cannot yet go into detail about the measures that will be taken.
Incidentally, Sachs is always popular in the conspiracy scene. In the summer, for example, he said the coronavirus likely escaped from a US-run lab in China. There are several variations of the lab thesis, but what they all have in common is that attempts have been made to make certain wild-borne coronaviruses more dangerous.
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
