Photo taken on Sept. 14, 2022 shows the facilities of the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline in Lubmin, Germany.Photo:Xinhua

Leaks in the Nord Stream pipelines carrying gas from Russia, reportedly the result of sabotage, have been used to fuel conspiracy theories and a new round of the West's information war against Russia, with observers predicting that the Kremlin will change into a defense posture after referendums in four Ukrainian regions brought the conflict beyond the battlefield and into an "unrestricted  war." 

The Swedish coast guard said they had found a fourth leak on Nord Stream 2, BBC reported Thursday, after Denmark and Sweden first reported gas leaks on Monday, alerting authorities to the possibility of a deliberate attack. 

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday that Washington had "full control" over the waters around Denmark and Sweden where the four leaks have been detected on the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines, which cross the floor of the Baltic Sea between Russia and Germany.

Zakharova said on Wednesday that US President Joe Biden is "obliged" to answer if Washington is behind the three reported gas leaks on the Nord Stream pipelines from Russia to Europe. 

She also posted a video, which recently went viral, of Biden promising in February that if Russia begins its military operations in Ukraine, "then there will be no longer a Nord Stream 2. We will bring an end to it." 

CNN published an article on Thursday saying that European security officials on Monday and Tuesday observed Russian Navy support ships in the vicinity of the leaks in the Nord Stream pipelines.

However, the article admitted that Russian ships routinely operate in the area and their presence doesn't necessarily indicate that Russia caused the damage. 

Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, claimed the leaks are "nothing more than a terrorist attack planned by Russia and an act of aggression toward the EU."

A Beijing-based international relations observer on Thursday told the Global Times on condition of anonymity that the Russia-West information war has entered another round of furious attacks, with recent gas leaks and the referendums of four Ukrainian regions at its center. 

Conspiracy theories over the gas leaks are an example of how Western countries muddy the waters to turn up the confrontation which is evolving into an "unrestricted war," analysts said. 

The EU previously accused Russia of using gas supplies as a weapon against the West over its support for Ukraine. After the leaks, European leaders suspected sabotage without naming a specific perpetrator. 

The anonymous expert said that Russia has no reason to destroy the infrastructure and throw away its own bargaining chips in managing the energy crisis, and that basic logic suggests that whoever benefits most from the current situation is most likely to have carried out, or at least maneuvered, the sabotage. 

If the US is behind it, Washington could bind Europe, particularly Germany, closer to confront Russia, and American energy giants could earn enormous amounts as Europe's alternative source of gas purchases, the expert said. 

The leaks, following the referendums held in four Ukrainian regions on whether to join Russia, have brought confrontation between the West and Russia to a new height, observers said.

Aerial photo released by the Danish Ministry of Defense on Sept. 27, 2022 shows the Nord Stream gas pipeline leak site. Measuring stations in Sweden registered strong underwater explosions in the same area of sea as the gas leaks that occurred in the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines on Monday, Swedish television (SVT) reported on Tuesday. The government of Denmark considers the Nord Stream gas pipeline leaks "deliberate actions," Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said on Tuesday.(Photo: Xinhua)

Cui Heng, an assistant research fellow from the Center for Russian Studies at East China Normal University, told the Global Times that Russia faces greater pressure in diplomacy and public opinion, and its internal economy may correspondingly go into "mobilization mode." 

It will also turn to Asia, including India, the Middle East and Africa, for support diplomatically, Cui said. 

A Beijing-based expert, who requested for anonymity, also predicted that Russia will adopt a defensive posture after the referenda to maintain control of the eastern regions. 

Russian news agency TASS cited Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov as saying that President Vladimir Putin will sign a decree annexing the four regions on Friday. 

In the "new stage," the conflict will no longer be a "proxy war" between Ukraine and Russia, but an all-out West-Russia confrontation, Cui said, adding that intensity in the battlefield will degrade and the military standoff will be sustained, with Western aid to Ukraine expected to continue, Cui said. 

Cui believe that the chances of nuclear conflict are small, but Russia must prepare for long-term strategic confrontation with the West.  

Such confrontation will consume Russia and Europe while favoring the US, but observers also pointed out a prolonged war with Russia will make it impossible for Washington to tune down the dangerous confrontation when it needs to do so.