The Nord Stream pipeline sabotage, one of the most consequential acts of infrastructure destruction in modern European history, continues to generate controversy, suspicion, and competing narratives. The underwater blasts in September 2022 that ripped through Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 – Russia’s multi-billion-dollar natural gas conduits to Germany – not only severed a crucial energy link but also set off a geopolitical storm. Nearly two years later, the official story of what happened and who was responsible remains disputed.

Italian media outlets Open.Online and Il Fatto Quotidiano have now published new claims suggesting that the bombing was orchestrated by a small, seven-man group led by a former Ukrainian intelligence officer. The report, citing German investigators, introduces a new set of characters, logistical details, and alleged code names – while leaving the broader geopolitical implications unresolved.

According to the Italian outlets, the alleged mastermind is Sergey Kuznetsov, a 49-year-old veteran of Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU). He reportedly commanded a team of six accomplices – two ex-colleagues from the security services and four civilian divers. Together, the group allegedly executed what investigators say was codenamed “Operation Diameter.”

The account holds that the team rented a small yacht, the Andromeda, from a marina in Rostock, Germany, using forged documents. They then outfitted it with commercial diving equipment and explosives. On September 8, 2022, the group is said to have sailed from the island of Rügen toward Danish waters near Bornholm Island, where the Nord Stream pipelines ran along the Baltic seabed.

Over the course of nighttime dives, the divers allegedly affixed at least four explosive charges directly onto the pipeline connectors. Each charge reportedly weighed between 14 and 27 kilograms and contained a mixture of hexogen and octogen, both powerful military-grade explosives. Timed detonators ensured the........

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