Ukrainian suspect stands trial in Germany over Nord Stream blasts
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Serhii Kuznetsov has gone on trial in Hamburg, the first suspect to face court over the 2022 Nord Stream pipeline explosions. German prosecutors accuse him of leading a team that attacked civilian infrastructure, while his defence says the case should be dismissed and Kuznetsov denies the charges.
Three of the four pipelines were damaged by explosions in the Baltic Sea near Bornholm on 26 September 2022. Investigators focused on deep-sea divers who had rented the yacht Andromeda, where they say traces of explosives were found; the defence argues there is no witness or forensic evidence linking Kuznetsov to the blasts and says he cannot properly answer the charges because of military secrecy.
- Kuznetsov is the first suspect to stand trial over the Nord Stream blasts.
- Prosecutors allege he led a team that attacked civilian infrastructure.
- His defence disputes the evidence and seeks to have the case dismissed.
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Nord Stream was a pair of undersea pipeline projects built to carry Russian natural gas to Germany beneath the Baltic Sea. Nord Stream 1 had been operating, but Russia halted its gas deliveries in 2022; Nord Stream 2 had been completed but never entered service.
The explosions happened near the Danish island of Bornholm in September 2022 and damaged three pipelines. German investigators have focused on a group of divers who travelled on a rented yacht, while Ukraine has said it was not involved.
The case matters because Germany has backed Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion, and prosecutors allege Ukrainian state agencies ordered the operation. The allegation is disputed, and the accused denies the charges.
Both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
The prosecution’s case, if proved, would show that a covert operation allegedly organised by Ukrainian state agencies caused major damage to critical infrastructure in European waters. Supporters of the charges can argue that serious allegations deserve a fair trial regardless of Ukraine’s wartime alliance with Germany, and that accountability helps uphold the rule of law.
The case against
The accused denies the charges, and the allegation that he helped plan the blasts must be tested against the evidence in court rather than treated as established fact. A defence case may question whether the traces on the yacht reliably link him to the explosions or prove state direction, while stressing the risks of drawing conclusions from a politically charged investigation.
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Originally published by BBC World as “Germany puts Ukrainian on trial accused of blowing up Nord Stream pipelines”.