Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has claimed that United States President Donald Trump intends to take over the Nord Stream pipelines in the Baltic Sea.
Speaking to France Televisions on Thursday, Lavrov said the U.S. has been striving to dominate the global energy markets, citing Venezuela, where Washington has effectively taken under control the world’s largest oil reserves, as well as Iran.
“We see the United States’ interest, which they have stated openly. There are official documents and official statements indicating that they seek to dominate global energy markets,” he said.
“The United States is also now saying that it wants to take over the Nord Stream pipelines.”
Trump Targets Control Over Russia’s Nord Stream Pipelines
Lavrov argued that Russia does not exploit conflicts for profit, insisting Moscow maintains trade and economic relations with all partners willing to engage.
“We never do anything in order to take something away from others,” he said, adding that Russia honours all contractual obligations even under sanctions or geopolitical pressure.
The Nord Stream pipelines, which were a key factor in securing Europe’s energy security before the war in Ukraine broke out, have become a flashpoint.
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It is owned by a subsidiary of Russia’s state-owned gas giant Gazprom, which filed for bankruptcy in Switzerland days after the invasion.
The 765-mile-long pipeline had been a crown jewel of Russia’s petro economy, linking its vast gas fields to Europe.
It was completed before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and never became commercially operational.
Explosions that destroyed the pipelines in 2022 largely severed Russian gas transit to Europe, squeezing energy supplies on the continent, although Russia had already largely stopped deliveries.
At the same time, Lavrov criticized Western responses, saying Germany and France failed to condemn the sabotage, and accused the United States of now attempting to assert control over the infrastructure.
“No one condemned explosions at Nord Stream pipeline perpetrated by Ukrainian saboteurs with the apparent support of Western intelligence services. I think it’s a disgrace for a country of its standing to swallow this act of sabotage and terrorism directed against its fundamental interests,” he added.
Explosions on the Nord Stream
Nord Stream comprises Nord Stream 1 (NS1) and Nord Stream 2 (NS2), which run from Russia to Germany through the Baltic Sea.
Between 26 and 29 September 2022, four leaks were detected in NS1 and NS2 near the island of Bornholm, Denmark. The leaks occurred in international waters within the economic zones of Denmark and Sweden.
Following the incident, Danish, German, and Swedish officials launched separate investigations into the leaks.
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Russia expressed interest in joining the investigations and has since argued that the leaks were a deliberate act of sabotage. Investigators spent years trying to piece together the mystery of who was behind it.
In a 21 February 2023 letter to the United Nations Security Council, Denmark, Germany, and Sweden noted that the investigations established that “powerful explosions due to sabotage” caused the damage to the pipelines.
On 18 November 2022, Swedish authorities reported that “foreign items” containing “explosive residue” were found near the site.
In February 2024, Danish and Swedish authorities informed the Council that they had closed their respective investigations, citing insufficient grounds to pursue a criminal case.
On 21 August, Germany’s prosecutor general announced that a Ukrainian man suspected of coordinating the bombings that targeted the Nord Stream pipelines had been arrested.
The Wall Street Journal reported in 2024 that an American investor, Stephen P. Lynch, was seeking to buy the two-pronged Nord Stream 2 pipeline, with one line remaining intact.
