Ukrainian ex-officer stands trial in Germany over Nord Stream bombing
Prosecutors say the former officer led a seven-person team that used a rented yacht and military-grade explosives to damage the pipelines.
- On Wednesday, Ukrainian ex-military officer Serhii Kuznietsov went on trial in Germany, accused of organizing the 2022 operation that destroyed Nord Stream pipelines and severed Europe from Russian natural gas.
- These explosions ruptured critical pipelines once central to Germany's energy supply, occurring as European nations sought to reduce dependence on Russian gas following the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
- Using the rented yacht Andromeda, prosecutors allege the suspect organized detonation of four bombs at depths of 70 to 80 meters near the Danish island of Bornholm.
- Kuznietsov faces charges including being an "accomplice to war crimes," while Croatian authorities arrested a second suspect, Vladimir Z., as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy denies his country's involvement.
- Sixteen court dates are scheduled through December 17, with the trial expected to continue into February 2027, potentially carrying domestic political implications for the German government.
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337 Articles
The case reaches the courts with Serhi Kuznetsov in the dock
Newcastle Herald
Nord Stream may have been lawful target, lawyers argue
A former Ukrainian army officer has gone on trial in Germany over undersea explosions four years ago that...
The German prosecution claims that former Ukrainian military officer Serguí Kuznetsov led the group that planted the explosives in the pipeline in 2022. Zelenski denies the involvement of the Ukrainian state in the attack.
Suspended for "war crime", Kuznietsov is accused of organizing the secret operation that blew up the pipelines in September 2022, thus cutting Western Europe from the largest source of Russian natural gas.
Trial of Kuznetsov, accused of organising Nord Stream pipeline explosions, begins in Hamburg
The trial of Ukrainian Serhiy Kuznetsov has begun at the Higher Regional Court of Hamburg; who is accused by prosecutors of planning and carrying out the September 2022 sabotage of the Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines while leading a team of Ukrainian divers, The Guardian reports.
The trial starts four years after the explosions of 26 September 2022 in the Nord Stream pipelines, causing large gas leaks in the Baltic Sea.
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