A Ukrainian individual was taken into custody on Wednesday in Croatia in connection with underwater blasts that caused damage to the Nord Stream gas pipelines linking Russia and Germany in 2022, as per Germany’s federal prosecutor. Identified as Vladimir Z., the man was detained in Pula, Croatia, under a European warrant executed by local law enforcement. Reports indicate that Vladimir Z., a certified scuba diver, was part of a group responsible for placing explosives on the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines near the Danish island of Bornholm in September 2022. Allegations against him include involvement in orchestrated explosions, anti-constitutional sabotage, and destruction of structures. The suspect is set to be extradited by Germany, although a similar extradition request for an individual with the same name and initial was rebuffed by Poland last year.
The incidents of underwater explosions on September 26, 2022, resulted in harm to pipelines designed to transport Russian natural gas to Germany beneath the Baltic Sea. This event aggravated tensions surrounding the conflict in Ukraine, prompting European nations to reduce their reliance on Russian energy sources in response to the Kremlin’s extensive invasion. The explosions inflicted damage on the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, previously the primary route for Russian gas supplies to Germany until Moscow ceased deliveries in August 2022. Nord Stream 2 was also impacted, remaining non-operational due to Germany suspending its certification process shortly before Russia’s military intervention.
In a separate development in Germany, federal prosecutors recently pressed charges against a former Ukrainian army officer named Serhii K. The individual, apprehended the previous year in Italy, faces accusations of explosion-related offenses, property damage, disruption of public services, and complicity in war crimes through attacks on civilian targets. German authorities allege that Serhii K. and accomplices departed from Rostock using a yacht rented from a German company.
Russia has accused the United States of orchestrating the explosions, a claim denied by Washington. The Nord Stream pipelines had long been under scrutiny by the U.S. and its allies, who voiced concerns about escalating European reliance on Russian gas. The Ukrainian government has also disavowed any involvement in the alleged plot.