A former Ukrainian army officer, Serhii Kuznietsov, is set to stand trial in Hamburg on charges related to the Nord Stream pipeline explosions. The 50-year-old ex-intelligence captain is accused of leading saboteurs who damaged the Russian-owned Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines in 2022, an act described as one of Europe’s most daring since WWII. Kuznietsov has denied involvement, though German prosecutors allege he coordinated a team of divers who placed military explosives on the pipes at 80 metres depth near Bornholm.
Three of the four pipeline strings were ruptured, releasing gas equivalent to 15 million tonnes of CO₂ — about one-third of Denmark’s annual emissions — and likely killing marine life within a 4km radius. The attack intensified scrutiny over Europe’s reliance on Russian energy, particularly Germany’s, which had imported gas via Nord Stream before pivoting to costlier alternatives after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. While initial suspicion pointed to the Kremlin, evidence has increasingly suggested Ukrainian intelligence may have been involved in what German police call a highly professional operation.
Kuznietsov is the first of seven suspects sought by German authorities to face trial. Others, including Volodymyr Zhuravlyov, a trained scuba diver, await extradition from Croatia, though a Polish court blocked his transfer last year, ruling Ukraine had the right to strike Russian targets under wartime rules. Germany maintains it cannot influence judicial proceedings, despite being Ukraine’s top European supporter, creating diplomatic tension over the case.
Source: Financial Times Companies · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing