Poland Frees Nord Stream Suspect

“WARSAW -- A Polish court ordered the release of a Ukrainian man wanted by Germany for allegedly taking part in the sabotage of the Nord Stream natural gas pipelines, the latest twist in a case that has stoked tension over the prosecution of suspects seen as aiding Ukraine in its fight against Russia.

 

Volodymyr Zhuravlev, 45 years old, was detained last month near Warsaw on a German warrant alleging he was involved in blowing up the pipelines in September 2022. The pipelines, which linked Russia and Germany under the Baltic Sea, were the world's largest offshore gas conduits at the time.

 

The judge ruled that the evidence presented by German authorities was insufficient. He said the attack on the pipeline was a legitimate operation considering that it was undertaken in wartime as Ukraine sought to defend itself against Russia.

 

"The act of blowing up [the Nord Stream pipeline] is an act of sabotage, but not during the times of conflict," said Polish Judge Dariusz Lubowski.

 

The Nord Stream pipelines had long been controversial in Eastern Europe for generating vast revenues for Moscow while bypassing Ukraine, a traditional transit hub for Russian energy exports.

 

Polish and Ukrainian supporters of Zhuravlev who attended the court hearing Friday chanted, "Free the hero!" They cheered in response to the judge's comments.

 

Polish officials had urged the court to free him. "The problem with North Stream 2 is not that it was blown up," Prime Minister Donald Tusk posted on X before the ruling. "The problem is that it was built."

 

A German government spokesman declined to comment, citing the independence of the Polish judiciary and German prosecutors.

 

German prosecutors have argued that the sabotage was a criminal act. They allege that Zhuravlev, an experienced deep-sea diver, was among a group of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians who used a small sailboat in an operation to plant explosives on the pipelines. They have issued arrest warrants for seven suspects -- three soldiers and four divers.

 

A senior German investigator involved in the probe noted that Germany issued a so-called European Arrest Warrant, a European Union instrument that needs to be executed under the law. The only issue before the Polish court was determining whether it was issued in accordance with the law. He called the decision to release Zhuravlev "shameful."

 

Lubowski, the judge, appeared to levy criticism on Friday against the German state for both helping build the pipelines and providing gas revenues to Moscow, as well as for investigating the sabotage.

 

"The German nation was from our point of view hostile towards Ukraine as it was co-financing Russia," the judge said. "We should then be asking rhetorically: Will in the future Germany be chasing Ukrainian military leadership as well?"” [1]

 

Did Polish chase German military leadership for crimes during and after WWII?

 

Yes, Polish authorities actively pursued German military and SS leadership for crimes committed during and after World War II. Poland held its own war crimes trials for individuals captured on Polish soil and requested the extradition of thousands of others from the Western Allies.

 

Key Polish efforts to hold German war criminals accountable included:

 

    Supreme National Tribunal: Between 1946 and 1948, Poland's highest war-crime tribunal tried 49 of the most prominent Nazi perpetrators who had committed crimes on Polish territory. Notable figures sentenced to death included:

        Rudolf Höss: The longest-serving commandant of the Auschwitz concentration camp.

        Amon Göth: Commandant of the Płaszów concentration camp.

        Arthur Greiser: Governor of the German-occupied region of Wartheland.

        Ludwig Fischer: Governor of the Warsaw District.

    Extradition efforts: Poland requested the extradition of over 12,000 war criminals from the Western Allies, in accordance with the 1943 Moscow Declaration.

 

About 2,000 German criminals were ultimately extradited to Poland for trial.

 

    Chief Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation: Established in 1945, this agency investigated Nazi atrocities and provided evidence for trials in Poland and at the Nuremberg trials. By 1950, it had helped secure the extradition of about 2,000 German war criminals. The commission's documentation of German crimes, including the destruction of Warsaw, was instrumental in building legal cases.

    Continued prosecution: Poland has continued to investigate and prosecute Nazi-era crimes. For example, in 2018, Polish prosecutors with the Institute of National Remembrance enlisted Interpol in the hunt for surviving SS personnel.

 

1. World News: Poland Frees Nord Stream Suspect. Jeznach, Karolina; Pancevski, Bojan.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 18 Oct 2025: A8.