Russia accuses U.S., demands probe into gas pipeline damage

Russia cast suspicions on the U.S. on Friday as it demanded an investigation into what caused recent damage to Baltic pipelines that has left gas leaking into the sea.
The four leaks were identified earlier this week after powerful blasts were recorded in the Baltic Sea on Monday, the same day that pressure on both pipelines dropped. Two of the leaks are in Denmark's Exclusive Economic Zone and two are in Sweden's.
Neither of the Nord Stream pipelines was in operation, but both are filled with natural gas - composed mostly of the greenhouse gas methane - that has been rapidly escaping.
The cause of the leaks remains unclear, and NATO and European governments are suspecting sabotage. Top European Union officials have threatened punishment for whoever was behind the leaks, but have so far not attributed blame.
The unexplained incidents come amid sky-high tensions between Europe and Russia regarding Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
Moscow has throttled gas supplies, a move that threw energy markets into disarray and triggered fears about a supply crunch as cold weather approaches.
"It is obvious that the main beneficiary, first of all economically, is the US," National Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev said at a meeting with intelligence chiefs on Friday, according to Interfax news agency.
Patrushev accused the West of launching a campaign against Russia immediately after the leaks became known. Therefore, he said, it was necessary to deepen the cooperation of intelligence agencies within the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), a loose association of former Soviet states, and to reveal the "principals and accomplices of the crime."