The trial of Ukrainian Serhiy Kuznetsov, accused of the “Nord Stream” blowing up, has begun in Germany. Here are the main points from the first hearing

On October 14, the trial on the merits of the charges brought by the German prosecutorʼs office against Ukrainian Serhiy Kuznetsov began at the Higher Regional Court of Hamburg. He is accused of blowing up of the “Nord Stream 1” and “Nord Stream 2” gas pipelines.

This was reported to Babel by his Ukrainian lawyer Mykola Katerynchuk, who was at the meeting.

The court consists of six judges. Katerynchuk says that representatives of Russiaʼs “Gazprom” sat next to the prosecutors during the trial. According to him, they were not allowed to participate in the trial as additional prosecutors, but were allowed to participate as civil plaintiffs.

The hearing began with the presiding judge identifying Serhiy Kuznetsov and asking if he would speak in court. He refused and said that his lawyers would speak for him during the trial.

Later, at the meeting, the prosecutor gave a rather brief speech about what he was accusing Kuznetsov of — a war crime in the form of an attack on civilian objects and causing an explosion.

Katerynchuk said that the lawyers also had an opening speech. Nicola Canestrini spoke about the genocidal war that Russia unleashed against Ukraine, gave the history of the construction of “Nord Stream”, how they were certified as civilian facilities and at what point, in the lawyersʼ opinion, they ceased to be so due to “Gazprom” participation in the war. The other lawyers focused on arguing why “Nord Stream” is a legitimate goal.

According to Katerynchuk, the lawyers noted that for the first time in the history of international law, the court will have to decide the issue of a new type of hydrocarbon transportation, as well as whether the aggressor has the right to use pipelines for trade and earnings to wage war.

“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.

On August 26, 2025, German investigators issued arrest warrants for six Ukrainians suspected of involvement in the bombing. The main suspect in the case is Ukrainian Serhiy Kuznetsov, believed to be the commander of the group that blew up the gas pipelines. He denies the charges.

In August 2025, Kuznetsov was detained in Italy, and in November he was extradited to Germany and arrested there. On July 1, 2026, German prosecutors formally indicted Kuznetsov.

Another suspect — Volodymyr Zhuravlyov — was detained in Croatia on August 19 and charged with conspiracy to commit an explosion, unconstitutional sabotage, and destruction of structures.

According to the German investigation, he was one of the divers who planted explosives on the gas pipelines. In 2024, Zhuravlyov was tried to be arrested in Poland, but he managed to leave for Ukraine.

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