Italy's top appeals court has ruled that a Ukrainian man suspected of involvement in blowing up the Nord Stream gas pipelines between Russia and Germany should be extradited to Berlin. There, former Ukrainian military officer Serhiy Kuznetsov will face a charge of anti-constitutional sabotage. He is due to be removed from Italy under German police escort in the next few days.
Prosecutors believe Mr. Kuznetsov coordinated and led a group that planted explosives on the pipes deep beneath the Baltic Sea in 2022, though they have not disclosed any evidence. The case has serious implications for relations between Ukraine and Germany, which is the biggest source of military aid for Kyiv in Europe.
Mr. Kuznetsov's lawyer stated that his client feels like a scapegoat and is very sad that his government has not spoken out in his defense or even confirmed that he was a serving soldier at the time of the blasts. The lawyer mentioned, If he carried out the attack, then he did so because he was ordered to do so because he was for sure a captain of the Ukrainian army.
Kuznetsov, whose military ID has been circulated among court documents, was arrested in northern Italy in late August, after booking a glamping site near Rimini with his family. His check-in details were automatically transferred to local police, leading to his apprehension that same day.
His lawyer described the Italian appeal court's ruling as a great disappointment, indicating that the legal fight for Mr. Kuznetsov will now shift to Germany. Many Ukrainians view the actions taken against the Nord Stream pipelines as legitimate resistance against Russian aggression, creating a context of confusion over why Germany would pursue such a prosecution against one of its allies.
In a related development, another Ukrainian suspect, Volodymyr Zhuravlyov, was briefly detained in Poland but was ultimately not extradited after a judge argued that prosecuting a Ukrainian in this context would be unjust given the ongoing conflict with Russia. The multifaceted legal and political dynamics surrounding this case continue to evolve.
Prosecutors believe Mr. Kuznetsov coordinated and led a group that planted explosives on the pipes deep beneath the Baltic Sea in 2022, though they have not disclosed any evidence. The case has serious implications for relations between Ukraine and Germany, which is the biggest source of military aid for Kyiv in Europe.
Mr. Kuznetsov's lawyer stated that his client feels like a scapegoat and is very sad that his government has not spoken out in his defense or even confirmed that he was a serving soldier at the time of the blasts. The lawyer mentioned, If he carried out the attack, then he did so because he was ordered to do so because he was for sure a captain of the Ukrainian army.
Kuznetsov, whose military ID has been circulated among court documents, was arrested in northern Italy in late August, after booking a glamping site near Rimini with his family. His check-in details were automatically transferred to local police, leading to his apprehension that same day.
His lawyer described the Italian appeal court's ruling as a great disappointment, indicating that the legal fight for Mr. Kuznetsov will now shift to Germany. Many Ukrainians view the actions taken against the Nord Stream pipelines as legitimate resistance against Russian aggression, creating a context of confusion over why Germany would pursue such a prosecution against one of its allies.
In a related development, another Ukrainian suspect, Volodymyr Zhuravlyov, was briefly detained in Poland but was ultimately not extradited after a judge argued that prosecuting a Ukrainian in this context would be unjust given the ongoing conflict with Russia. The multifaceted legal and political dynamics surrounding this case continue to evolve.
