Trial begins in Germany for former Ukrainian officer in North Stream sabotage case

Start of the trial

On Wednesday, a trial began in Germany for Serhiy Kuznetsov, a former officer in the Ukrainian armed forces. He is accused of organising a covert operation that resulted in the sabotage of the North Stream pipelines in September 2022.

Details of the charges and the suspect's role

According to the prosecution, Kuznetsov led a group of Ukrainian agents, which included divers and an explosives expert. This team, according to the investigation, carried out one of the largest acts of sabotage in modern history. Prosecutors claim that Kuznetsov, who was detained in Italy last year under an international warrant, collaborated with other military personnel to plan a secret mission in the interests of unspecified Ukrainian state structures.

The defendant categorically denies his involvement in the explosions that damaged a 1,200 km pipeline in the Baltic Sea. The Kyiv government also rejects any responsibility for the incident, which remains a sensitive issue in relations between Ukraine and Germany, the largest European provider of military aid to Kyiv.

Political context and reactions

This trial will be the first instance of a public review of evidence gathered during a multi-year investigation. The investigation has been diplomatically and politically inconvenient for the German government, which continues to firmly support Ukraine despite the presence of clues linking Kyiv to the crime.

On Monday, the Russian government stated that it expects a "fair verdict" that will reveal the names of the perpetrators and the individuals who ordered the operation.

Classification of the crime and other defendants

German prosecutors classify the actions for which Serhiy Kuznetsov is charged as a war crime. Specifically, this involves attacks on civilian objects and the detonation of explosives that destroyed infrastructure and caused damage to public utilities. The likely aim of the sabotage was to undermine one of Russia's main sources of foreign income following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which began earlier that same year.

Serhiy Kuznetsov is the only person to have appeared in court in this case. Meanwhile, another man, Volodymyr Zhuravlyov, was detained in Croatia, whom the prosecution believes to be one of the divers who were part of the sabotage group.