Nord Stream sabotage suspect to be tried in Germany

The Ukrainian suspect arrested in Croatia on Wednesday over alleged involvement in the Nord Stream gas pipeline explosions will be brought before Germany’s Federal Court of Justice once the extradition process from Croatia is completed.

“After being extradited from Croatia, the accused will be brought before the investigating judge at the Federal Court of Justice,” Germany’s Federal Public Prosecutor General said in a written statement.

The suspect, identified as Volodymyr Z., is known to be a professional diver, the statement said.

He is alleged to have participated in dives to plant explosives along the Nord Stream gas pipeline route, prosecutors explained.

“The accused is charged with carrying out an explosion using explosives as part of a group, sabotage that undermines the constitutional order, and destruction of public facilities,” the statement read.

The Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines—subsea routes in the Baltic Sea carrying natural gas from Russia to Germany—suffered sabotage explosions in September 2022 that damaged three of their pipeline strings.

The incident, which occurred amid the energy crisis triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, prompted international investigations to identify those responsible for the attack on vital European infrastructure.