A Ukrainian individual was apprehended on Wednesday in Croatia in connection to the underwater blasts that inflicted harm on the Nord Stream gas pipelines linking Russia and Germany in 2022, as stated by Germany’s federal prosecutor. The man, identified as Vladimir Z., was taken into custody in Pula, Croatia, under a European warrant. Prosecutors mentioned that Vladimir Z., a certified scuba diver, was part of a group that planted explosives on the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines near the Danish island of Bornholm in September 2022. Allegations against him include involvement in causing explosions, anti-constitutional sabotage, and destruction of structures.
The German government expressed satisfaction with the arrest, emphasizing the importance of resolving the pipeline bombings. Earlier, German federal prosecutors pressed charges against a former Ukrainian army officer named Serhii K. in connection with the same incidents. Serhii K. was detained in Italy in August 2025 and later extradited to Germany in November, facing charges related to explosion-causing activities, property damage, disruption of public services, and being an accomplice to war crimes by targeting civilian entities.
Germany intends to seek extradition of the suspect. Poland had previously blocked the extradition of a person with the same name and initial, identified as Volodymyr Zhuravlov by Polish authorities. Notably, Poland’s stance against the Nord Stream pipelines is rooted in concerns about Russian energy leverage in Europe. The U.S. and Ukraine have both refuted any involvement in the undersea explosions that occurred on September 26, 2022, damaging the pipelines designed to transport Russian natural gas to Germany. The incidents added strain to relations amid Europe’s efforts to reduce reliance on Russian energy supplies following the Ukraine conflict.