Polish police have detained Ukrainian citizen Vladimir Z. in Pruszków near Warsaw on suspicion of sabotaging the Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 pipelines, RMF FM reported.
The man has been transferred to the District Prosecutor's Office in Warsaw and extradition proceedings to Germany are expected to begin shortly. The detention was based on a European arrest warrant issued by a German court.
According to the media, Vladimir Z. worked as a swimming instructor. In July 2024, he managed to travel from Poland to Ukraine without any problems, although he was wanted by German investigators. In addition, Polish media reported that Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski had privately expressed his willingness to grant him asylum and an award.
The daily Die Zeit previously reported that investigators may have already identified all those involved in the sabotage. Six arrest warrants have been issued for Ukrainian citizens and a seventh suspect, who allegedly died in December 2024 during fighting in eastern Ukraine, has also been linked to the case.
According to German authorities, the sabotage team consisted of the yacht's captain, the operation coordinator, an explosives expert and four divers. The entire group was to be transported to the site of the attack in the Baltic Sea on the yacht Andromeda, which set sail from Rostock.
TASS/gnews.cz - GH
English 
Czech 
Spanish 
French 
Italian 
Russian 
Chinese 
German