30 September 2025 , 15:52
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A Ukrainian man suspected of involvement in causing undersea explosions that damaged the Nord Stream gas pipelines between Russia and Germany in 2022 has been arrested in Poland, according to a spokesperson for the district prosecutor’s office in Warsaw.
The man, identified as Volodymyr Z, was detained in Pruszków, central Poland, as reported by Polish radio station RMF FM, which first covered his arrest. He has been transferred to the district prosecutor’s office in Warsaw.
The man, whose full name was not released due to privacy regulations, was detained on a European arrest warrant issued by German authorities, said Piotr Antoni Skiba, a spokesperson for the office.
A spokesperson for Germany’s federal prosecutor did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.
Another Ukrainian man was arrested in Italy last month in connection with the explosions on the undersea pipelines that were constructed to transport Russian natural gas to Germany under the Baltic Sea.
Tymoteusz Paprocki, Volodymyr Z’s lawyer, told RMF FM: “Considering the full-scale war in Ukraine and the fact that Nord Stream is owned by the Russian company Gazprom, which finances these activities, the defense currently does not see any possibility of pressing charges against anyone involved in these events.”
The lawyer stated that it was uncertain whether his client had participated in the sabotage and he was awaiting official information regarding the intentions of the German justice system in pressing charges. The defense would challenge extradition, the lawyer said.
Undersea explosions on 26 September 2022 damaged pipelines designed to transport Russian natural gas to Germany under the Baltic Sea. The damage exacerbated tensions over the war in Ukraine as European countries sought to reduce their reliance on Russian energy sources following the Kremlin’s full-scale invasion of its neighbor.
According to RMF FM, German authorities claim the man is a diving instructor who, in September 2022, sailed to the Baltic Sea on a yacht, from which he dove underwater and placed the explosives on the pipeline.
World Affairs Correspondent