A man from Ukraine was taken into custody on Wednesday in Croatia in connection with underwater blasts that caused destruction to the Nord Stream gas pipelines linking Russia and Germany in 2022, as confirmed by Germany’s federal prosecutor. Identified as Vladimir Z., the individual was apprehended in Pula, Croatia, through the execution of a European warrant by local law enforcement. Prosecutors stated that Vladimir Z., a certified scuba diver, was part of a group that planted explosives on the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines near the Danish island of Bornholm in September 2022. The suspect is under strong suspicion of involvement in causing the explosions, anti-constitutional sabotage, and destruction of property.
The arrest was welcomed by the German government, with a justice ministry spokesperson expressing satisfaction with the progress made by the federal prosecutor’s office in investigating the pipeline bombings. In a separate incident, German federal prosecutors had recently pressed charges against another Ukrainian individual, Serhii K., in relation to the same explosions. Serhii K., a former Ukrainian army officer, was arrested in Italy in August 2025 and extradited to Germany in November on charges of explosion, property damage, disruption of public services, and complicity in war crimes by attacking civilian targets. German authorities allege that Serhii K. and accomplices departed from the port of Rostock using a yacht rented from a German company.
Poland had previously blocked the extradition of a suspect with the same name and initial as the recent arrest. This individual, identified by Polish authorities as Volodymyr Zhuravlov, is the same person currently in custody. The Polish government’s refusal to extradite Zhuravlov was attributed to its longstanding opposition to the Nord Stream pipelines due to concerns about Russian energy influence in Europe. Meanwhile, both the U.S. and Ukraine have denied any involvement in the underwater explosions that occurred on September 26, 2022, causing damage to the crucial gas pipelines. Russia has accused the U.S. of orchestrating the blasts, a claim denied by Washington, while the Ukrainian government has also refuted any role in the sabotage.