Why Zelensky and Zaluzhny Are Targeted by a Wall Street Journal 'Exposé' on Nord Stream
by Stephen Bryen
Both Germany and the US have put out numerous stories about the destruction of the Nordsteam pipeline. They say the pipeline was destroyed by the Ukrainians. The latest story, headlined in the Wall Street Journal, would have us believe that the plot to blow up the pipeline was approved initially by Vladimir Zelensky and carried out by the former Ukrainian Armed Forces chief, Valery Zaluzhny. Following the story, after the planning was done by a motley crew of army officers and civilians, mostly soaked in alcohol, Zelensky tried to call off the attack because he was warned by the US not to carry it out. Zaluzhny, however, carried on, saying he had no way to call back the operation.
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| Zaluzhny with Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi (left) during the Battle of Kyiv, March 2022 |
The story also links to German prosecutors attempting to indict one member of the crew, a Ukrainian diving instructor (without revealing his last name). This crew member allegedly was living in Poland with his family, but has disappeared. The Germans are accusing the Poles of obstruction in the case.
Almost the entire story put out by the Wall Street Journal strains credulity. For example there is a claim that German investigators checked the German-registered yacht, called the Andromeda, and say they uncovered DNA, fingerprints, and traces of explosives. Who is associated with the DNA and fingerprints is not explained, nor is the type of explosive “traces” claimed to have been found. The Journal only says that this was discovered as part of a two year police investigation. Over such a long period the Andromeda was no doubt rented out to plenty of others. Are there differences between Ukrainian fingerprints and others?
One of the most curious claims is that the Andromeda pulled into the small port town of Sandhamn, about 50 km east of Stockholm, in Sweden, apparently after experiencing bad weather. The Journal reports that (unnamed) eyewitnesses say that the Andromeda displayed a “small Ukrainian flag.”
Ships calling on ports are expected to display the flag of their origin country. Called Ensigns, the Andromeda should have displayed the flag of Germany if the vessel was owned by German interests and not registered elsewhere (as sometimes is the case). It would not show the Ukrainian flag because Ukrainians rented the Andromeda, according to the Wall Street Journal story.
But this tantalizing fact about the flag says something more. No secret operation to destroy a multibillion dollar pipeline would display its national flag. Either there was no operation by Ukraine to blow up the pipeline, in which case the Andromeda could have displayed a Ukrainian flag along with a flag of the vessel’s national origin, or if it was a secret operation then displaying such a flag makes zero sense.
The story about bad weather also seems like fiction. Photos of the exploded pipeline show sunny weather.
The real question to ask is what is the origin of the Wall Street Journal story, and why would a respected newspaper such as the Journal feature a story that cannot be verified?
The story has undermined both Zelensky’s and Zaluzhny’s credibility. Was the story fed to the Journal as a preparation to replace Zelensky and Zaluzhny? Zaluzhny is now Ukraine’s ambassador to the UK, but at the time of the pipeline incident he was Chief of Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. More importantly he has been touted as a replacement for Zelensky. But Zaluzhny is as hard line as Zelensky on Russia, so it may be that he is not the preferred western candidate to replace Zelensky. The Wall Street Journal may have been used to help knock off Zelensky and Zaluzhny.
It is noteworthy that the article says that the German authorities do not have evidence on Zaluzhny that they could bring into a courtroom, so Zaluzhny (who has denied any involvement in Nordstream) remains in his job and is not subject to any indictment in German courts.
Zelensky also has denied any involvement in the Nordstream pipeline destruction.
Other writers, most notably Seymour Hersh, have argued that Nordstream was destroyed in an operation carried out by the United States, possibly with help from others. Hersh provided a detailed description of how the operation unfolded. He correctly notes that top US officials, including President Joe Biden and former acting undersecretary of State Victoria Nuland, openly pushed for the pipeline’s destruction. Once the US declared for the destruction of the pipeline, putting aside who was tasked to carry it out, the US has found itself in an awkward position. The same is true for the German government which has supported US denials of involvement in the pipeline affair and sought to pass it off on the Ukrainians. The “Ukraine did it” story was leaked to try and shift the blame onto the Ukrainians. While the earlier stories did not claim either Zelensky’s or Zaluzhny’s involvement, the newest leaks are directly aimed at them. Germany is in lockstep with Washington.
All of this is playing out while the Ukraine war is likely in the last stages. Even the Kursk operation by Ukraine is openly aimed at setting the stage for peace talks with Russia. It is clear that Zelensky (who is aligned with nationalistic right wing elements in the army) is the wrong interlocutor, and he is probably not acceptable to the Russians. If he is soon gone, one can expect a more pliable stand-in to take his place at the negotiating table.
Zelensky meanwhile has a major problem with Washington that goes beyond his inflexibility. The Washington Post reported in its August 17 edition that the Kursk attack derailed sensitive, secret negotiations hosted in Qatar aimed at a partial ceasefire focused on Ukraine and Russia’s energy infrastructure. If a deal was reached it would open the door for peace negotiations.
The Ukrainians, led by Zelensky and Syrsky, undermined the deal in four ways: (1) the Kursk invasion, which incentivized the Russians to further punish Ukraine; (2) Ukraine’s attempt to drive its Kursk forces to go after the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant (a goal they failed to achieve); (3) the use of long range weapons against strong US opposition and (4) the drone attack on the Zaphorize Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) plant that destroyed one of two cooling towers. In addition, there are reports that Ukraine intends a major military operation against the ZNPP and is preparing to carry it out soon, and other reports, so far unconfirmed but appearing on the Telegram channel, that Ukraine is preparing a “dirty bomb” to use on Russian territory.
If all the above reports are all true, and some of them certainly are, Zelensky has become a rogue actor not only for Russia but for the United States.
Stephen Bryen is a former Deputy Under Secretary of Defense and is a leading expert in security strategy and technology. Bryen writes for Asia Times, American Thinker, Epoch Times, Newsweek, Washington Times, the Jewish Policy Center and others.
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