Italy Approves Extradition Of Ukrainian Suspect In 2022 Nord Stream Pipeline Sabotage

An Italian court has approved the extradition of a Ukrainian man accused of orchestrating the 2022 Nord Stream pipeline explosions to Germany, but his legal team plans to appeal to Italy’s highest court.

The suspect, identified under German privacy laws as Serhii K., and later reported as Serhii Kuznietsov, was arrested on August 21 near Rimini, a resort town on Italy’s Adriatic coast, while vacationing with his family.

German authorities accuse Kuznietsov of coordinating a complex sabotage operation that damaged the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines in the Baltic Sea near the Danish island of Bornholm.

The explosions destroyed three of the four pipeline lines, cutting off Russian gas supplies to Germany and causing the largest manmade methane release in history. The blasts also escalated tensions over the Ukraine conflict and heightened energy supply concerns across Europe.

German prosecutors say that on September 8, 2022, Kuznietsov and a group left Rostock, Germany, on a sailing yacht. The team included four divers, a skipper, and an explosives expert.

They are accused of placing at least four bombs, each weighing 14–27 kilograms, at depths of 70–80 meters in the Baltic Sea. The yacht returned to Germany on September 22, just four days before the explosions. Kuznietsov then reportedly traveled back to Ukraine by car.

During his detention hearing in Italy, Kuznietsov denied any involvement in the blasts, claiming he was in Ukraine at the time serving as a captain in the Ukrainian military. His lawyers argued that he should be granted functional immunity, since the alleged acts were carried out under military orders.

The defense also complained about his detention in Germany, saying he lacked access to all case files and faced translation problems because some documents were given to him in English instead of his native language.

A court in Bologna has approved the transfer of Kuznietsov to Germany, but his defense has appealed to Italy’s highest court, the Court of Cassation. Lawyers said the extradition process could be delayed until the court issues its ruling, likely in about a month. They stressed that fundamental rights, including the right to a fair trial and proper detention, must not be compromised in the name of judicial cooperation.

The Italian court rejected the defense’s claim of military immunity, noting that the sabotage occurred outside a war zone and that the German extradition request did not consider Kuznietsov’s military role. If extradited, he faces charges in Germany of anti-constitutional sabotage, destruction of important infrastructure, and collusion to cause an explosion.

Investigators have linked six suspects to the attack, with one still under investigation. Denmark and Sweden, which also had jurisdiction, have closed their cases. German prosecutors said traces of undersea explosives were found on the yacht, though further details of the investigation remain limited.

The Nord Stream explosions disrupted Russian gas flows to Europe and contributed to ongoing energy instability amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Reference: Reuters

Source: Maritime Shipping News