Media: Ukrainian detained in Poland denies role in blowing up Nord Stream pipelines

A Ukrainian citizen Volodymyr Z. held in Poland has denied German allegations of involvement in the blowing up of the Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea.

As reported by Polish radio station RMF FM, a Ukrainian man, identified as Volodymyr Z., was detained in Pruszków under a German-issued European arrest warrant and questioned by the District Prosecutor's Office in Warsaw.

Volodymyr Z. denied the claims that he had taken part in the operation in the Baltic Sea carried out three years ago. His lawyer, Tymoteusz Paprocki, insisted the key issue was not the case itself but the wider context.

"In my view, no Ukrainian citizen can be accused by Europe of destroying Russian property when his country is at war," he said.

The defence has announced it will seek to prevent the extradition of Volodymyr Z. to Germany.

"My client has lived in Poland for a long time and has not committed any crime on the territory of the European Union," the detainee added.

The final decision rests with the court.

It is suggested that the suspect is Volodymyr Zhuravlov, for whom Germany issued an arrest warrant in June 2024. Berlin has also sent Poland a European arrest warrant in his case.

Polish media have reported that Poland's Minister of Foreign Affairs Radosław Sikorski has been or still is prepared to grant asylum to Volodymyr Zhuravlov.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Ukrainian officials were involved in the blowing up of Nord Stream. In particular, it was claimed that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy approved the operation to blow up the pipeline and then tried unsuccessfully to cancel it. The operation reportedly took place under the supervision of Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the former commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Ukrainian authorities have publicly denied such allegations. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kyiv had not been involved in the explosions and suggested analysing who might have sought to spread such claims in the media.