Germany arrested a Ukrainian man in Italy on Thursday in connection with the mysterious Nord Stream gas pipeline explosions, a massive act of sabotage that remains under investigation.
The man, identified as Serhii K, is part of a Ukrainian group that planted explosives in Swedish and Danish waters under the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines, federal prosecutors said. He is “believed to have been one of the coordinators of the operation” who set off with accomplices from Rostock on Germany’s northeastern coast in a sailing yacht to carry out the attack, they added.
Recommended Stories
Explosives planted by an unknown country or entity blew up the pipelines, which lie in the Baltic Sea and carry oil from Russia to Germany, in September 2022. The unprecedented attack on a major element of global infrastructure shook Europe and disrupted the continent’s energy supply, provoking multiple investigations into the attack’s origin.
Speculation quickly festered as to who was behind the attack, with fingers pointed both at Russia and Ukraine due to the war between the two. Ukraine could have carried out the attack to prevent Russia from profiting from gas sales to Europe and back it into a corner financially, some argued. Russia could have carried out a “false flag operation” aimed at covering up Moscow’s involvement, others have suggested.
Although Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has denied culpability for the sabotage, his country remains under scrutiny, particularly by Germany, which in August 2024 issued an arrest warrant for a Ukrainian diving instructor identified as Volodymyr Z over the case. He was one of the divers Germany believes planted explosive devices on the pipelines.
The elaborate plot to destroy Russia’s multibillion-dollar Nord Stream pipelines, its main economic connection with the West, has been characterized by both Russia and Ukraine, as well as Germany, as a terrorist attack.
Germany, Sweden, and Denmark each launched investigations into the explosions following the 2022 incident. Sweden dropped its inquiry in February 2024 due to the belief that the country did not have jurisdiction over the incident. Denmark closed its investigation the same month because it lacked “sufficient grounds to pursue a criminal case.”
Germany’s investigation continues, with officials pointing fingers primarily at Ukraine.
While Kyiv has denied responsibility for the sabotage, the CIA reportedly uncovered a Ukrainian plan to blow up the pipelines three months before the attack took place. The Dutch intelligence community tipped off the CIA to Ukraine’s alleged plans, according to Dutch and German broadcasters.
Although the CIA pressed Ukraine not to carry out the attack and believed the country had decided to cancel the operation, the similarities between its planned sabotage and the explosions that took place in September 2022 were so similar that U.S. officials believed the plans were delayed rather than canceled outright, according to international reports in June.
Other reports indicate that while Zelensky originally approved the operation, he called it off after the CIA caught wind of it. Valery Zaluzhny, then the Ukrainian commander in chief of the armed forces, provoked Kyiv’s outrage after deciding to press forward with the sabotage against Zelensky’s wishes, per reports.
Still, there has been no determination as to what, if any, country or entity backed the sabotage operation.
Investigative journalist Seymour Hersh has claimed the United States may have been involved, an argument backed by Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin has suggested the attack came from the “Anglo-Saxons,” referring to the U.S. and the United Kingdom, due to accusations that Washington wanted to halt shipments of Russian gas to Europe.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has said much the same. In July 2024, he laid blame for the sabotage operation at the feet of then-President Joe Biden, calling the pipeline explosions “an act of terrorism carried out at the obvious direction of the Americans.”
EIGHT MOST SHOCKING REVELATIONS FROM THE NORD STREAM SABOTAGE PLOT
When pressed on who he believed was responsible for the sabotage operation in 2023, President Donald Trump, at the time a civilian, replied, “I don’t want to get our country in trouble, so I won’t answer it.”
“But I can tell you who it wasn’t, was Russia … It wasn’t Russia,” he added.