Russia may seek compensation over Nord Stream blasts – RIA

(Reuters) – Russia is waiting for the outcome of an investigation into the sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipelines before making any request for compensation, the RIA state news agency cited a foreign ministry official as saying on Tuesday.

The pipelines under the Baltic Sea were damaged in explosions last year, and investigations have yet to establish who was responsible.

In reply to a question about compensation, RIA quoted Dmitry Birichevsky, the head of the ministry’s economic cooperation department, as saying: “The probe is not over yet, we are waiting for its results to be presented to the (United Nations) Security Council, then we will decide what to do.”

Russia has blamed the United States, Britain, and Ukraine for the blasts which largely cut it off from the lucrative European market. Those countries have denied involvement.

The United Nations Security Council has refused to carry out its own investigation into the incident, leaving it to the governments of Sweden, Denmark and Germany.