Ukrainian Serhiy Kuznetsov, suspected of blowing up the “Nord Stream” pipeline, is being held in Germany in worse conditions than he was held in Italy — he has lost even more weight, cannot maintain the necessary diet and cannot make phone calls.
This was reported to Babel by his lawyer in Ukraine Mykola Katerynchuk.
The lawyers visited Kuznetsov on December 10 — he was in unsatisfactory condition. The Ukrainian lost even more weight than after his detention in Italy — the issue of the special diet he needed was not resolved, despite the fact that it was mentioned in the court decision and the prosecutorʼs letter.
The disregard for Kuznetsovʼs eating habits was one of the reasons why he went on a hunger strike in an Italian prison from October 31 to November 11. During that time, the Ukrainian lost almost nine kilograms. He decided to stop after the Italian authorities provided guarantees that his rights, including the right to adequate nutrition, would be respected.
Kuznetsov is not allowed to make phone calls except at the request of his lawyer. His first call to his wife from a German prison will be on December 15, six months after his arrest.
The German staff treats the Ukrainian very disrespectfully. They continue to put psychological pressure on him to confess. Katerynchuk says he will not do this.
The defense will soon challenge in court where he is being held. During his extradition from Italy, the lawyers were told that it was a prison that met “certain standards”, but Serhiy’s current condition suggests otherwise.
The defense plans to request that Kuznetsov be transferred to another institution, or that his detention be replaced with a medical facility, or that he be held at the Ukrainian Embassy in Germany.
Today the defense appealed to the Ukrainian Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets and believes that there will be a reaction to this tomorrow, and some steps will be taken to improve Serhiyʼs condition.
“Nord Stream” explosions and Serhiy Kuznetsov
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.
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.
On October 27, a court in Bologna ordered the extradition of Serhiy Kuznetsov to Germany. The defense appealed to the Italian Supreme Court.
That same month, a Polish court refused to extradite another detainee in the case Volodymyr Zhuravlyov to Germany. The court ruled that Germany had provided insufficient evidence and that the alleged act “was committed in the context of the criminal and genocidal war that Russia has been waging against Ukraine since 2014” .The Polish prosecutor’s office decided not to appeal the decision.
On November 19, the Italian Supreme Court upheld the decision to extradite Serhiy Kuznetsov to Germany. In particular, the court found no evidence in favor of Kuznetsovʼs functional immunity as a Ukrainian military officer. One of the reasons was that no Ukrainian authority officially recognized the sabotage of “Nord Stream” as a military operation.
In November, the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets wrote a letter to the Italian court, in which he admitted for the first time on behalf of the state that at the time of the explosions at “Nord Stream”, Kuznetsov was serving in the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
On November 27, Kuznetsov was extradited from Italy to Germany. He was arrested the next day.
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