Ayhan Simsek
19 August 2026•Update: 19 August 2026
A Ukrainian national has been arrested in Croatia in connection with the 2022 sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipelines, German authorities announced on Wednesday.
The Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office said the suspect was arrested in the coastal city of Pula under a European arrest warrant issued by Germany, marking the second major arrest in the ongoing investigation.
Prosecutors said Vladimir Z., a trained scuba diver, worked alongside a team to destroy the Baltic Sea pipelines built to carry Russian natural gas to Germany. He remains in Croatian custody pending extradition to Germany, where he will be brought before an investigative judge.
The arrest marks a key breakthrough in the probe into the September 2022 undersea explosions, which severed three of the four Nord Stream pipelines and effectively halted direct Russian gas imports to Germany.
It follows the 2025 arrest in Italy of another primary suspect, former Ukrainian soldier Serhii K., who was subsequently extradited to Germany. His trial is scheduled to begin this fall at the Hanseatic Higher Regional Court in Hamburg.
German investigators allege Serhii K., a former operative in Ukraine's SBU intelligence service, commanded a seven-member team consisting of divers, assistants, a medic, and a captain. The group allegedly used forged documents to rent the sailing yacht Andromeda, which served as their floating operational base.
The Ukrainian government has consistently denied any involvement in the sabotage. However, media reports have alleged the operation was overseen by then-army chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi without the knowledge of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
