Former Ukrainian officer Serhii Kuznietsov faces fees in Germany of collusion to trigger an explosion, sabotage and destruction of infrastructure.
Printed On 20 Nov 2025
Italy’s prime courtroom has authorized the extradition to Germany of a Ukrainian man suspected of coordinating the sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipelines between Russia and Europe in 2022.
The suspect, Serhii Kuznietsov, 49, has denied being a part of a cell of saboteurs accused of inserting explosives on the underwater pipelines within the Baltic Sea, severing a lot of Russia’s gas transfers to Europe and prompting provide shortages on the continent.
Beneficial Tales
record of 4 objectsfinish of record
After Italy initially blocked Kuznietsov’s extradition final month over a problem with a German arrest warrant, Italy’s Supreme Courtroom of Cassation authorized the switch on Wednesday.
Kuznietsov “will due to this fact be surrendered to Germany inside the subsequent few days”, his lawyer Nicola Canestrini stated.
The suspect, a former officer within the Ukrainian navy, has denied any role in the attack and has fought makes an attempt to switch him to Germany since he was detained on a European arrest warrant within the Italian city of Rimini, the place he was vacationing along with his household, in August.
“Nevertheless nice the frustration, I stay assured in an acquittal after the total trial in Germany,” Canestrini stated in an announcement.
Final month, a courtroom in Poland dominated towards handing over another Ukrainian suspect wished by Germany in reference to the pipeline explosions and ordered his rapid launch from detention.
Kuznietsov faces fees in Germany of collusion to trigger an explosion, sabotage and destruction of essential constructions.
German prosecutors stated he used cast id paperwork to constitution a yacht that departed from the German metropolis of Rostock to hold out the assault close to the Danish island of Bornholm on September 26, 2022.
In keeping with extradition paperwork, prosecutors stated Kuznietsov organised and carried out the detonation of a minimum of 4 bombs containing 14kg to 27kg (31lb to 62lb) of explosives at a depth of 70 to 80 metres (230ft to 263ft).
The explosions broken each the Nord Stream 1 and the Nord Stream 2 pipelines so severely that no gasoline could possibly be transported by means of them. In complete, 4 ruptures had been found within the pipelines after the assault.
Kuznietsov says he was a member of the Ukrainian armed forces and in Ukraine on the time of the incident, a declare his defence workforce has stated would give him “useful immunity” underneath worldwide regulation.
Earlier this month, members of the European Parliament (MEPs) despatched a letter to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressing concern about Kuznietsov’s extradition.
“The destruction of the pipelines dealt a big blow to Russia’s battle machine in its ongoing battle of aggression towards Ukraine,” the MEPs wrote.
“From the standpoint of worldwide regulation, actions undertaken in defence towards such aggression, together with the neutralisation of the enemy’s navy infrastructure, fall inside the lawful conduct of a simply battle,” they wrote.
“We, due to this fact, urge the Italian authorities to droop any steps towards extradition till the ensures of useful immunity and state duty are completely and independently assessed,” they added.
Kuznietsov, who faces as much as 15 years in jail if discovered responsible by a German courtroom, has been held in a excessive safety jail in Italy since his arrest and at one level staged a starvation strike to protest towards his jail circumstances.
Six different suspects within the case stay at massive.
