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Seymour Hersh Speaks Out: “You Have to Hold the President to Account”

By Richard Abelson
Published February 14, 2023

In his first interview since publishing his bombshell Nord Stream report, investigative journalist Seymour Hersh said it was “not a hard story to find” and that it was obvious that NATO was involved in the Nord Stream attack. Hersh was astonished at his colleagues, who “don’t seem to have anyone inside.”

“I saw that the Germans are starting to cope with this story,” host Gary Brecher of Radio War Nerd remarked.

“Would you call what they’re doing coping?” said Hersh.

Throughout “all of the scheming,” Brecher quoted Hersh’s source, “some working guys in the CIA and the State Department were saying, ‘Don’t do this. It’s stupid and will be a political nightmare if it comes out.’”

“Isn’t it incredibly stupid?” Brecher asked.

“But they didn’t see it that way,” Hersh said. “They saw the gas coming from Russia. Russia had pipelines supplying gas to Germany, very cheap, so much so that some of the German companies were reselling (the gas) for a profit.”

Nord Stream was owned by Gazprom “controlled by oligarchs who are respectful of Putin. But 49% were (owned by) four different European companies, who were selling gas downstream all over Europe. So you had a tremendous source of cheap gas for Europe. Germany’s a real powerhouse, with Mercedes and BASF, the largest chemical company in the world. They soak up gas.”

“And so the fear was…” Hersh said, “Biden wants this war. Don’t ask me why Presidents want war. I think it’s good for their ratings. But Biden was very big on … showing we can stand up to Russia … with Ukrainian soldiers. It’s good politically in America too.”

Biden “saw that gas as a weapon”, Hersh said. “As long as Russia was selling that much gas, they thought Russia would weaponize it if there was a war.” The planning began before the war, Hersh said.

Speaking at a press conference with German chancellor Olaf Scholz Feb. 7, 2022, Biden said, if Russia invaded Ukraine, “there will be no longer a Nord Stream 2.” Pressed to explain how, Biden doubled down: “We will – I promise you – we will be able to do it.”