A Ukrainian national has been arrested in Pula, Croatia, in connection with the 2022 Nord Stream pipeline bombing, German prosecutors confirmed. The suspect, identified as Volodymyr Zhuravlyov, was apprehended under a European arrest warrant issued by Germany, which is seeking his extradition.
German prosecutors allege Zhuravlyov is a trained diver and accuse him of helping to plant explosives on the Baltic Sea energy infrastructure. The attack destroyed three of the four Nord Stream pipelines that transported gas from Russia to Germany. The sabotage, which occurred months after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, severely damaged the pipelines and contributed to an energy supply crisis in Europe.
According to reports, Zhuravlyov was arrested while working as an advisor on the set of the film 'Snake Island.' The movie, directed by Doug Liman, stars Sean Penn and Adrien Brody and is about the Nord Stream pipeline attack itself. Police in Croatia arrested Zhuravlyov on Wednesday.
German investigators believe the attack was orchestrated by a Ukrainian state agency to disrupt Russia's future energy revenues, which could be used to finance its war efforts in Ukraine. Prosecutors claim Zhuravlyov worked closely with Sergiy Kuznetsov, another Ukrainian national arrested in Italy last year and subsequently extradited to Germany.
This is not the first time Zhuravlyov has been detained in relation to the pipeline sabotage. He was previously held in Poland for his alleged role in the destruction of the pipelines. However, Polish authorities refused to extradite him at that time, reportedly ruling that any such action by Ukraine would be considered an act of war rather than a criminal offense.
The case presents a politically sensitive situation for both Germany and Ukraine, given Germany's strong support for Kyiv in its conflict with Russia. German government officials have emphasized the independence of the judiciary in handling the matter. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has stated that his government had no knowledge of any plan to attack the pipelines.