An individual from Ukraine was taken into custody on Wednesday in Croatia in connection with underwater explosions that caused damage to the Nord Stream gas pipelines linking Russia and Germany in 2022, as stated by Germany’s federal prosecutor.
Vladimir Z., whose surname was withheld in compliance with German privacy laws, was apprehended in Pula, Croatia, by local law enforcement executing a European warrant.
Prosecutors indicated that Vladimir Z., a trained scuba diver, was part of a group involved in placing explosives on the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines near the Danish island of Bornholm in September 2022.
He is under strong suspicion of collectively orchestrating explosions, engaging in anti-constitutional sabotage, and causing damage to buildings and structures.
The arrest was welcomed by the German government on Wednesday.
The justice ministry spokesperson, Nicholas Limmer, told reporters in Berlin, “We’re pleased that the federal prosecutor’s office is making headway in these investigations, as it is crucial to elucidate the pipeline bombings.”
Earlier last month, German federal prosecutors pressed charges against a former Ukrainian military officer related to the same explosions.
The individual, identified as Serhii K., was captured in Italy in August 2025 and extradited to Germany in November, facing accusations of explosion, property damage, disruption of public services, and complicity in war crimes by targeting civilian objects.
German authorities alleged that Serhii K. and others departed from the port of Rostock using a yacht rented from a German firm.
Suspect Previously Detained in Poland
Efforts will be made by Germany to secure the extradition of the suspect. Poland had blocked the extradition of an individual with the same name and initial the previous year.
A spokesperson confirmed to The Associated Press that it was the same person identified by Polish authorities as Volodymyr Zhuravlov.
WATCH | Wall Street Journal’s Bojan Pancevski on the mystery (June 2026):
Poland has been critical of the Nord Stream pipelines, viewing them as a Russian strategy to exploit its significant energy reserves for geopolitical leverage across Europe. Prime Minister Donald Tusk expressed that handing over Zhuravlov during the extradition hearing was not in Poland’s interests.
It remains unclear why Zhuravlov departed from Poland despite the existing arrest warrant against him.
“Volodymyr was aware that the ruling was applicable only within Poland,” stated his Polish attorney, Tymoteusz Paprocki, to the AP, noting that Zhuravlov’s wife was also taken aback by her husband’s detention in Croatia.
U.S., Ukraine Deny Involvement
The underwater explosions on September 26, 2022, resulted in damage to pipelines constructed for transporting Russian natural gas to Germany beneath the Baltic Sea.
The destruction heightened tensions amid the Ukraine conflict, prompting European nations to lessen their reliance on Russian energy supplies following the Kremlin’s full-scale invasion.
The explosions caused harm to the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which was the primary route for Russian gas to Germany until Moscow halted supplies in August 2022. They also impacted Nord Stream 2, which was never put into operation as Germany halted its certification process shortly before Russia’s invasion.
