German prosecutors have determined that the Ukrainian authorities orchestrated the explosion of the Nord Stream natural gas pipelines, which occurred on the floor of the Baltic Sea in September 2022.

The Federal Public Prosecutor General of Germany confirmed this on July 2 (local time), announcing that it had indicted a Ukrainian suspect, Serhii Kuznetsov (50), on June 30. He faces charges including causing an explosion under criminal law and attacking civilian energy infrastructure, which is classified as a war crime under international law.

According to the summary of the indictment released by the prosecution, Kuznetsov, a former Ukrainian military officer, planned the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines alongside other military personnel under the direction of Ukrainian government agencies following the outbreak of the war with Russia in February 2022.

The prosecution concluded that the operation was intended to permanently block Russian gas supplies through Nord Stream, thereby cutting off Russia's war funding revenue.

The operation team consisted of several divers, a captain, and an explosives expert, with Kuznetsov serving as the leader, according to the investigation.

The prosecution explained that the team attached high-performance military explosives equipped with timers to the Nord Stream pipelines.

Kuznetsov is the only one of the seven suspects currently in custody.

He was arrested while vacationing in Italy in August 2025 and was extradited to Germany in November of the same year following legal proceedings.

The weekly magazine Die Zeit noted, "The big question is who assigned him the mission," adding that "the trial could turn into a highly political issue."

Western media previously reported that Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the former commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces who currently serves as the ambassador to the United Kingdom, directed the operation.

The Ukrainian government has consistently maintained that it was not involved in the operation.

However, suspicions have been raised regarding whether the government assisted in the escape of suspects.

In June 2024, German prosecutors requested the arrest of another suspect, Volodymyr Zhuravlev, who was residing in Poland, but the attempt was unsuccessful.

German media reported at the time that the suspect fled across the border in a vehicle belonging to the Ukrainian Embassy in Poland.

Nord Stream is a gas pipeline approximately 1,230 kilometers long that connects Russia to Lubmin in northern Germany.

In September 2022, three of the four Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines were destroyed on the seabed near the Danish island of Bornholm.

The German prosecution stated, "The explosion caused severe damage to the pipelines," adding that "prior to this incident, Nord Stream 1 supplied half of Germany's natural gas demand."

Following the news of the indictment, the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party demanded an immediate halt to aid for Ukraine, calling the incident "an attack on the lifeline of German industry."

(Photo: Getty Images Korea)