Germany has formally charged Serhii Kuznietsov for the September 2022 sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipelines. The 49-year-old former Ukrainian military officer is accused of masterminding the underwater explosions that crippled three of four Baltic Sea pipeline sections.
Authorities arrested Kuznietsov in Italy in August 2025 before extraditing him to Germany on November 27. German courts rejected his immunity claim on January 15, 2026. He faces charges of collusion to cause an explosion and anti-constitutional sabotage.
The attack was allegedly conducted from the chartered yacht Andromeda. Investigators have linked up to seven suspects to a Kyiv-based diving school. One suspect is reportedly dead. A second, Volodymyr Zhuravlev, remains in Poland after a court blocked his extradition in October 2025, highlighting jurisdictional rifts within the EU.
The September 26, 2022 blasts incapacitated a critical artery for Russian gas into Europe. Sweden and Denmark both closed their inquiries without charges in 2024, leaving the German case as the solitary path to judicial accountability.