They describe leaks in gas pipelines as "sabotage" 1:52
(CNN) --
European security officials on Monday and Tuesday observed Russian navy support vessels in the vicinity of leaking Nord Stream gas pipelines, likely caused by underwater explosions, according to two Western intelligence officials and another source familiar with the matter. the case.
It's unclear if the ships had anything to do with those explosions, these sources and others said, but it's one of many factors investigators will look into.
Russian submarines were also seen not far from those areas last week, one of the intelligence officials said.
Three US officials said the United States still does not have a full explanation for what happened, days after the explosions appeared to trigger three separate and simultaneous leaks from the two pipelines on Monday.
Mysterious leaks affect Russian Nord Stream gas pipelines: was there sabotage? Who would benefit?
This is what we know
Russian ships routinely operate in the area, according to a Danish military official, who stressed that the presence of the ships does not necessarily indicate that Russia caused the damage.
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"We see them every week," this person said.
"Russian activities in the Baltic Sea have increased in recent years. They often test our conscience, both at sea and in the air."
However, the sightings continue to cast suspicion on Russia, which is the country that has drawn the most attention from European and US authorities as the only actor in the region believed to have both the ability and the motivation to deliberately harm the pipelines.
US officials declined to comment on the information from the ships on Wednesday.
Frederiksen: Leaks from Nord Stream are deliberate actions 0:44
Both Denmark and Sweden are investigating, but a site inspection has yet to take place and details about the exact cause of the explosions remain scant.
A European official said an assessment by the Danish government is underway and it could take up to two weeks for the investigation to properly start because pressure in the pipes makes it difficult to get close to the leak site, though another source familiar with the matter said the probe could start as early as Sunday.
The prime ministers of both Denmark and Sweden said publicly on Tuesday that the leaks were likely the result of deliberate actions, not accidents, and the Swedish security service said in a statement on Wednesday that it cannot be ruled out "that a foreign power be behind".
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan also called the leaks "apparent sabotage" in a tweet on Tuesday night.
But top Western officials have so far refrained from attributing the attack to Russia or any other nation.
The Kremlin publicly denied attacking the pipelines.
A spokesman called the accusation "predictably stupid and absurd."
CNN has contacted the Russian Defense Ministry for comment on the ships' presence.
The Nord Stream leak investigation
The Danish government is leading the investigation and has established a five-nautical-mile exclusion zone and a one-kilometre no-fly zone, according to European sources familiar with the matter.
Sullivan aside, US officials have been much more circumspect than their European counterparts in drawing conclusions about the leaks.
"I think many of our partners have determined or believe that it is sabotage. I'm not at the point where I can say one thing or the other," a senior military official said Wednesday.
"The only thing I know there is that we think the water is between 80 and 100 meters [deep] at that place where the pipeline is. Other than that, I don't know anything else."
But both a senior US official and a US military official said Russia remains the prime suspect -- assuming the European assessment of deliberate sabotage is confirmed -- because there are no other plausible suspects with the ability and willingness to carry out the attack. operation.
"It is difficult to imagine any other actor in the region with the capacity and the interest to carry out an operation of this type," said the Danish military.
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Russia has called for a UN Security Council meeting on the damaged pipeline this week, which the senior US official says is also suspicious.
Normally, the official said, Russia is not organized enough to act so quickly, suggesting the move was planned in advance.
If Russia deliberately caused the explosions, it would be effectively sabotaging its own pipelines: Russian state-owned company Gazprom is the majority shareholder in Nord Stream 1 and the sole owner of Nord Stream 2.
But officials familiar with the latest intelligence say Moscow would likely see such a move as worthwhile if it helped raise Europe's costs of supporting Ukraine.
US and Western intelligence services believe that Russian President Vladimir Putin is betting that as electricity costs rise and winter approaches, European public opinion could turn against the Western strategy of economically isolate Russia.
Sabotaging pipelines could "show what Russia is capable of," a US official said.
Russia has already taken steps to manipulate energy flows in ways that have harmed itself economically, but also harmed Europe.
Russia cut gas supplies to Europe via Nord Stream 1 before cutting it off entirely in August, blaming Western sanctions for causing technical difficulties.
European politicians say that was a pretext to stop supplying gas.
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"They have already shown that they are perfectly willing to do it," said one of the sources.
"They weigh their economic pain against Europe's."
The new Nord Stream 2 pipeline has not yet entered commercial operation.
The plan to use it to supply gas was scrapped by Germany days before Russia sent troops to Ukraine in February.
However, US, European and Ukrainian officials have been warning for months that critical infrastructure — not only in Ukraine, but also in the United States and Europe — could be targeted by Russia as part of its war against Ukraine.
The United States warned several European allies over the summer, including Germany, that the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines could come under threat and even be attacked, according to two people familiar with the intelligence and warnings.
The warnings were based on assessments by US intelligence services, but were vague, the people said: It was not clear from the warnings who might be responsible for any pipeline attack or when it might occur.
The CIA declined to comment.
Der Spiegel was the first to report on the warnings from the intelligence services.
CNN's Alex Marquardt and Oren Liebermann contributed to this report.
War in UkraineRussian NewsNord Stream 2 Pipeline