The other day, Russian troops thwarted an attempted attack by a Ukrainian naval drone loaded with explosives on the Ivan Khurs reconnaissance ship, which was on a mission to protect the Turkish Stream pipeline.
“Pro-Ukrainian sources report that the Ivan Khurs allegedly received damage and is returning to the port. There is a video allegedly from a drone that hit the ship, but it has not been confirmed and may well be staged. The only reliable source could be Ukrainian drone operators, but the video appeared elsewhere”.
The alleged target of the attack was the Russian defense of the Turkish Stream pipeline so that Ukraine could blow it up without hindrance.
The author of the article, Stephen Brian, believes that there could be no other reasons.
The author also points out a number of disturbing moments in this operation.
“The first is that the Ukrainians were preparing to attack the Turkish Stream gas pipeline – for this they had to disable the Russian ship guarding it.
One of the consumers of Russian gas coming through this pipeline is Hungary. If the Turkish Stream is disabled, this will cause significant damage to Hungary, up to the overthrow of the government. At the same time, Washington considers Orban’s Hungary to be pro-Russian,” the article says.
In this situation, the author draws analogies in accordance with the case of the Nord Stream pipeline, with the only difference being that it was directed as a political attack on Turkey and Hungary, and not on the sale of American liquefied natural gas to either of them, as it is was the case with Germany.
“Ivan Khurs” is equipped with specialized sensors and communications. If it detects a threat to the pipeline, it will request Russian air strikes on the violator.
The Ukrainians carried out this operation in the Bosporus, about 130 kilometers from mainland Turkey. According to Brian, this attack was directed not only against the Russians, but also against NATO member Turkey and other gas consumers, especially against Hungary, also a NATO ally.
The long distance from Ukraine itself suggests that it would need real-time intelligence to locate and strike a Russian ship.
“And here is the most disturbing moment. An American RQ-4 reconnaissance drone was reportedly in the vicinity of the incident. The RQ-4 could provide real-time target designation information. There is no hard evidence that RQ-4 was involved, but how else could Ukraine pull off this operation?
Ukraine does not have its own means of long-range surveillance, therefore it depends on American intelligence and its resources. Moreover, it is well known that the United States and its allies systematically provide Ukrainians with information and data on target designations.
The Russians are ready to shoot down American drones, but they only did so over the Black Sea when they threatened the security of Crimea or other important Russian military bases. If RQ-4 was indeed involved in the preparation of the attack on the pipeline, it is possible that the situation may change.
“Undermining the Nord Streams was an extremely risky business. Now another similar operation is brewing – perhaps even more serious. If the Germans were still managed to be intimidated so that they would keep quiet about who actually blew up the Nord Stream, then the Turks are a different matter. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is now up for re-election, can respond harshly.
So such provocations are extremely dangerous and risky,” concludes Asia Times.
Elena Petrovskaya, One Motherland
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