On September 22 2022, four underwater blasts in the Baltic Sea blew up the Nordstream pipelines. The pipelines delivered natural gas from Russia to Germany. Every American President from Bush through Trump opposed Germany’s reliance on Russian gas. Germany, determined to wean itself from nuclear power and coal, nevertheless, felt compelled to purchase the gas and was confident that Russia would honor its contracts regardless of international politics. Then Russia invaded Ukraine and revenue gained from gas sales funded their war effort.
Pancevsky’s investigation is part whodunit. Conspiracy theories abound: CIA?, Ukraine?International terrorists? It is part spy story as the perpetrators are not only revealed, but their daring adventure defies imagination. There is an insider’s accounting of Ukrainian politics, its inherited Cossack culture, its deep corruption, its military creativity in the face of overwhelming odds, and President Zelensky’s general ineptitude. And by contrast there is detailing of the German investigation into the contravention of international law, and as is inherent to German culture, following precise legal procedures to bring criminals to court and to assess judgement.