Explosions…under surveillance
Nikolai Petrovsky, Pravda, July 28-29,2026 —
In his recently published book, “Nord Stream: Exploding the Old World Order,” Austrian journalist, writer, and historian Georg Tidl examines the interests of various countries through the lens of the pipeline bombing, highlighting contradictions and open questions in the investigation of this crime. Tidl’s research was featured in a publication in the left-wing German newspaper Junge Welt, which characterized the incident as a ticking time bomb for German politics.
Recently, the Federal Prosecutor’s Office filed charges against a Ukrainian suspected of involvement in the Baltic terrorist attacks, allegedly acting on behalf of his country’s government. Various theories are circulating, but reliable information is virtually nonexistent, as the German government believes it could threaten the “well-being of the state.” For Georg Tiedl, this formulation proves that “friendly states or secret services can be compromised,” the newspaper notes.
In his book, the journalist and historian traces how Russia was initially blamed for the explosions in the Western media’s initial reactions, and later, when this theory failed to materialize, the sailing yacht Andromeda and a small Ukrainian commando group took center stage. The book’s strength lies in its focused examination of the numerous contradictions, open questions, and political interests behind the various sides, as highlighted in Junge Welt. It is particularly compelling when individual aspects of the Andromeda story are examined for veracity. Tiedl gathers expert statements that support doubts about whether such a complex operation involving a 15-meter yacht could have been carried out at all. The weight of equipment and explosives the yacht would have had to carry for this alone was too great. Furthermore, the explosion sites are located 76 kilometers apart. At most, one in four explosions could have been caused by the crew of the Andromeda. However, the question of how such an operation could have gone undetected in one of the most heavily monitored maritime areas in the world remains unclear, the newspaper quotes the book’s author as saying. Or were the explosions carried out, figuratively speaking, “under surveillance”?
Tidl notes that the area around the attack sites was under constant surveillance by NATO and the German navy. Prior to the explosions, NATO warships conducted exercises in this maritime area, including practice laying mines on the seabed. Were these exercises “complex camouflage”? “Smoke grenades being launched,” the author asserts. At times, the argument extends beyond reliable analysis, for example when Tidl speculates about thermonuclear explosive devices and the supposed shock wave on Kaliningrad. Furthermore, sociopolitical and historical digressions generally hinder a definitive understanding of the event. Other books on the attack published on the same topic are not mentioned, but a classification of the various interpretations would be desirable, especially on such a controversial topic, as Tidl’s opinion is analyzed in Junge Welt.
The question of “interests” associated with the terrorist attack occupies a significant space in the book. Regardless of the true perpetrator, for Tiddle, the US and Poland are economic speculators. “We are now the leading suppliers of liquefied natural gas to Europe,” then-US Secretary of State Antony Blinken triumphantly declared. And in July 2025, the EU and the US announced energy imports from the US worth approximately $750 billion by 2028. With Nord Stream 2, Germany would become the hub of gas supplies to Europe. Poland, by contrast, planned, together with the US, to remake the Central European gas market and take over Germany’s transfer business—a project that clearly advanced with the shutdown of Nord Stream. At the ceremonial opening of the Baltic Pipeline the day after the attack, Polish Prime Minister Morawiecki declared “the end of the era of dependence on Russian gas.”
In Tiedl’s view, September 26, 2022, was a “turning point for Germany.” Economically, politically, and culturally, “Europe has come to an end.” Did the explosions truly destroy the “old world order” or merely reveal shifts in its long-fragile state? The question remains open, and Tiedl’s book provides further food for thought on this topic, concludes Junge Welt.