NATO to set up efforts to better protect underwater pipelines

NATO is to set up a coordination cell to better protect critical infrastructure following the alleged acts of sabotage on the Nord Stream natural gas pipelines, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Monday.
The aim is "to map our vulnerabilities and engage with industry" Stoltenberg said at NATO's headquarters in Brussels.
"This will support our efforts to prevent and counter threats to critical infrastructure, including undersea cables and pipelines," he added.
Some NATO allies have stepped up the protection of particularly important facilities and the exchange of intelligence in recent months.
In the North and Baltic Seas, NATO's maritime presence was doubled after the Nord Stream explosions.
Further measures are due to be decided at the NATO summit in Lithuania in July, Stoltenberg said.
The Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines in the Baltic Sea were severely damaged last September after explosions.
According to the findings so far, at least two detonations occurred, resulting in four leaks near the Baltic Sea island of Bornholm, partly in Danish and partly in Swedish waters.
Enormous amounts of gas leaked for days from the pipelines which run from Russia to Germany.
The EU, NATO and security sources immediately spoke of sabotage as the cause of the explosions. So far it is unclear who is responsible.