Finger-pointing

Listen to Today's Edition:

Germany issued an arrest warrant against a Ukrainian national for his suspected involvement in explosions that damaged the controversial Nord Stream pipelines in 2022, Deutsche Welle reported.

According to the authorities, the suspect, identified as Volodymyr Z., carried out the sabotage with two accomplices, also reportedly Ukrainian.

Volodymyr Z. was last known to be living on the outskirts of the Polish capital of Warsaw but escaped to Ukraine before he could be arrested, Polish officials said.

Germany “did not include him in the database of wanted persons, which meant that the Polish Border Guard had no knowledge and no grounds to detain Volodymyr Z,” the Polish National Public Prosecutor’s Office told Reuters.

According to the probe, the suspect approached the driver of a yacht on the German island of Rügen, and directed him toward the location of the pipelines before sending his two accomplices to place the explosives underwater.

The driver recognized the suspect in a photograph shown by investigators. Swedish newspaper Expressen identified him as 44-year-old diving instructor Volodymyr Zhuravlov.

The multi-billion-dollar Nord Stream pipelines carried Russian gas via the Baltic Sea to European Union (EU) countries, especially Germany.

The pipelines were subject to controversy as critics said they would enhance EU dependence on Russia, especially after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

The September 26, 2022 explosions along the pipelines caused gas leaks in the Baltic Sea, and left Russia and Western nations blaming each other.

Danish and Swedish investigations were closed without naming any suspect. In the German probe, despite pointing at a Ukrainian citizen, no link was drawn with the government of Ukraine, which has repeatedly denied any involvement.