Italy blocks decision to extradite Ukrainian to Germany accused of undermining Nord Stream

The Italian Court of Cassation has overturned the decision of the Court of Appeal to extradite to Germany former Ukrainian military captain Serhiy Kuznetsov, who was detained on August 21 in the province of Rimini under a European arrest warrant on suspicion of sabotage at the Nord Stream gas pipeline in September 2022.

This is reported by Ansa.

The case will be re-examined by a new panel of the court.

During the hearing, the Prosecutor Generalʼs Office supported one of the arguments of the defense appeal filed by lawyer Nicola Canestrini, regarding the erroneous legal qualification of the facts indicated in the European arrest warrant.

Nord Stream explosions

On September 26, 2022, three explosions occurred on the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines, which run along the bottom of the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany, causing massive gas leaks. Only one of the four strands of the pipeline remained intact.

The US, UK and EU governments have declared a deliberate sabotage. Russia believes that the US and its allies are interested in the bombings. Western and Russian media have written about different versions — from sabotage by the Russians themselves to the involvement of Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelensky has denied Ukraineʼs involvement in the sabotage.

Germany is investigating the role of former Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny in the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipeline, as reported by the American newspaper The Wall Street Journal. Zelensky allegedly initially approved the plan, but later ordered it canceled, and Zaluzhny continued the operation despite this.

On August 26, 2025, German investigators issued arrest warrants for six Ukrainians suspected of involvement in the bombing. Ukrainian Serhiy Kuznetsov, who was detained in Italy and suspected of involvement in the sabotage, denies the charges. An Italian court allowed his extradition to Germany.

In November 2024, the German newspaper Der Spiegel published an investigation that stated that the saboteurs who sabotaged Nord Stream also planned to blow up TurkStream in the Black Sea, but they failed.

In early February 2024, Sweden closed its investigation into the Nord Stream sabotage due to lack of jurisdiction. Following Sweden, Denmark also closed its investigation.

For more news and in-depth stories from Ukraine, please follow us on X.