Polish court refuses to extradite to Germany Ukrainian suspected of undermining Nord Stream

The District Court of Warsaw has refused to extradite Ukrainian citizen Volodymyr Zhuravlev, suspected of undermining the Nord Stream pipeline, to Germany.

This is reported by Onet.

According to the court, the German side did not provide enough evidence, but only "general information", which was "not enough to execute the warrant."

"The court assessed whether the action is a crime from the point of view of Polish law. And the action that is being accused was carried out in the context of the criminal and genocidal war that Russia has been waging against Ukraine since 2014," the court ruled.

Unlike the hearing during which the court determined a preventive measure, the suspect was brought into the courtroom. He was held behind closed doors, and media representatives were invited only for the announcement of the decision.

In addition, the information letter provided the personal data of a Ukrainian for the first time. Previously, Polish media referred to him as Volodymyr Zh.

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.

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