Jerman mengadili warga Ukraina yang dituduh meledakkan pipa Nord Stream

Serhii Kuznetsov (C) was pictured in court on Wednesday as the trial got under way

A Ukrainian man has gone on trial in Hamburg accused of blowing up Russia's Nord Stream gas pipelines to Germany, four years after one of the most dramatic acts of sabotage in modern European history.

Prosecutors say Serhii Kuznetsov played a leading role in a team of saboteurs that destroyed the pipelines, accusing him of a war crime. His defence has called for the case to be dismissed.

The case is highly sensitive in Germany, one of Ukraine's closest allies since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, seven months before the attacks took place.

Extradited to Germany last year, Kuznetsov denies the charges, as does a second suspect who is fighting extradition from Croatia.

Kuznetsov became the first suspect to go on trial for the blasts on Wednesday morning, and a packed public gallery looked on as he entered the courtroom, appearing relaxed.

He even smiled at times, including during initial exchanges where he spoke to confirm personal details such as his name and place of birth.

He had previously only been identified by German prosecutors as Serhii K and pictured with his face blurred, but a court spokeswoman said he had now waived his anonymity.

Kuznetsov, 50, wore a pair of headphones and appeared to listen intently to a translation of proceedings in Ukrainian, as the prosecution read out the charges against him of ordering divers and an explosive expert to attack civilian infrastructure.

The defence outlined their case, telling the court that only circumstantial evidence had emerged in the four years since the Nord Stream blasts.

"[Prosecutors] made a thorough investigation of four years," Italian defence lawyer Nicola Canestrini told the BBC outside the courtroom. "They did not find one single witness, they did not find no forensics, no DNA, no fingerprints - nothing!"

Kuznetsov was extradited to Germany from Italy late last year

Canestrini and his colleagues argued that as a soldier the defendant was bound to secrecy, and therefore he could not have a fair trial as he was unable to defend himself.

"Let's say he has an alibi, he was on another secret operation, how can you prove that if he's [not able] to tell us as defence attorneys where he was and which witnesses we could summon?"

Prosecutors argue the case falls under Germany's code of crimes against international law as a war crime, as an "attack by military means against civilian objects".

The defence told the court his extradition to Germany was flawed as no mention had been made at the time of the war crime allegation.

In the months after explosives destroyed three of the four gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea off the island of Bornholm on 26 September 2022, Western suspicion looked towards Moscow without directly apportioning blame.

Russia had already shut off the flow of gas to Germany in Nord Stream 1 weeks before the attack, and Nord Stream 2 had never been turned on. Berlin had frozen the multi-billion dollar project shortly before the invasion and there were reports of suspicious Russian naval movements before the blasts.

As investigators from Sweden, Denmark and Germany tried to find out who carried out the attack, Russia's Vladimir Putin accused the US and its UK allies, blaming "the Anglo-Saxons" - which they denied.

Eventually, after Denmark and Sweden shut down their inquiries, German prosecutors focused on a group of deep-sea divers who had rented a yacht called the Andromeda in the northern German port of Rostock.

They said later that "traces of subsea explosives were found in the samples taken from the boat".

Despite the strain on relations with Kyiv, German prosecutors pressed ahead with the case, and in January 2025 the German federal court of justice ruled that it fell within German territorial jurisdiction, external and prosecutors had a responsibility to act as it involved "undermining [Germany's] internal security".

Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky has always maintained that Ukraine had "nothing to do with [the Nord Stream blasts]", although in their indictment German prosecutors allege the saboteurs conceived the plot "acting by order of Ukrainian state agencies".

Nord Stream trial: How German police followed the evidence - to Ukraine

The case has highlighted differences of opinion on the trial in Kyiv and Berlin.

Oleksandr Merezhko, who chairs the Foreign Affairs Committee in the Ukrainian parliament, points out that the blasts took place during a time of war with Russia and "Nord Stream 2 was nothing but a tool used by Russia in order to get prepared for the war".

He told the BBC they had no confirmation of the German account: "It's one of the versions."

However, Stefan Meister, of the German Council on Foreign Relations, says successive chancellors in Berlin have done their best to remove the politics from the case.

"They tried to make not a big story out of it, not to give it too much attention, to give it to the institutions, to the judiciary that they will deal with it. This is not a political case. So they tried to depoliticise it," he explained.

Three of the four Nord Stream pipelines were ruptured by explosions in September 2022

In August 2025, Kuznetsov was arrested after checking into a hotel near the Italian Adriatic resort of Rimini, by police acting under a European arrest warrant issued by federal prosecutors in Germany.

After several weeks of court battles fighting extradition, when his surname emerged in court documents, Kuznetsov was transferred to Germany late last year.

German prosecutors allege that in 2022 he was a serving officer in the Ukrainian army, external, and he had led a group of professional divers, a boat captain and an explosives expert.

While his legal fight was going on in Italy, another Ukrainian man called Volodymyr Zhuravlov successfully challenged Germany's extradition bid in a Polish court.

In a ruling very different from Italy's Supreme Court, the Polish judge ordered Zhuravlov's release in October 2025, stating that the attack on the pipelines was not unlawful, and if Ukraine had organised an armed mission it was "justified, rational and just".

Although he was released by the court in Warsaw, he was arrested last August in Croatia on suspicion of being a suspect who "participated in the dives necessary" for the sabotage.

Last month, Croatia approved his extradition, although it is not clear when that will happen, and if his case could become part of the Hamburg trial.

Despite the difficult nature of the case for Kyiv and Berlin, Ukrainian MP Oleksandr Merezhko does not believe it will spoil relations as "it's in the best national interests of Germany to continue to support us".

Polish judge refuses to extradite Ukrainian Nord Stream blasts suspect

A journey to the site of the Nord Stream explosions

Serhii Kuznetsov (C) terlihat di pengadilan pada hari Rabu saat persidangan dimulai

Seorang pria Ukraina diadili di Hamburg dengan tuduhan meledakkan pipa gas Nord Stream milik Rusia ke Jerman, empat tahun setelah salah satu tindakan sabotase paling dramatis dalam sejarah Eropa modern.

Jaksa penuntut mengatakan Serhii Kuznetsov memainkan peran utama dalam tim sabotase yang menghancurkan pipa-pipa tersebut, dan menuduhnya melakukan kejahatan perang. Pembelaannya meminta agar kasus ini dibatalkan.

Kasus ini sangat sensitif di Jerman, salah satu sekutu terdekat Ukraina sejak Rusia melancarkan invasi besar-besaran pada Februari 2022, tujuh bulan sebelum serangan terjadi.

Diekstradisi ke Jerman tahun lalu, Kuznetsov membantah tuduhan tersebut, begitu pula tersangka kedua yang sedang berjuang melawan ekstradisi dari Kroasia.

Kuznetsov menjadi tersangka pertama yang diadili atas ledakan tersebut pada Rabu pagi, dan galeri publik yang penuh sesak menyaksikan saat ia memasuki ruang sidang, tampak santai.

Ia bahkan tersenyum di beberapa momen, termasuk saat pertukaran awal di mana ia berbicara untuk mengonfirmasi data pribadi seperti nama dan tempat lahirnya.

Sebelumnya ia hanya diidentifikasi oleh jaksa Jerman sebagai Serhii K dan fotonya ditampilkan dengan wajah disamarkan, tetapi seorang juru bicara pengadilan mengatakan ia kini telah melepaskan hak anonimitasnya.

Kuznetsov, 50 tahun, mengenakan sepasang headphone dan tampak mendengarkan dengan saksama terjemahan jalannya persidangan dalam bahasa Ukraina, saat jaksa membacakan tuduhan terhadapnya karena memerintahkan penyelam dan seorang ahli bahan peledak untuk menyerang infrastruktur sipil.

Pembelaan memaparkan kasus mereka, memberitahu pengadilan bahwa hanya bukti tidak langsung yang muncul dalam empat tahun sejak ledakan Nord Stream.

"[Jaksa] melakukan penyelidikan menyeluruh selama empat tahun," kata pengacara pembela Italia Nicola Canestrini kepada BBC di luar ruang sidang. "Mereka tidak menemukan satu pun saksi, mereka tidak menemukan forensik, tidak ada DNA, tidak ada sidik jari - tidak ada apa-apa!"

Kuznetsov diekstradisi ke Jerman dari Italia akhir tahun lalu

Canestrini dan rekan-rekannya berargumen bahwa sebagai seorang tentara, terdakwa terikat pada kerahasiaan, dan karena itu ia tidak bisa mendapatkan persidangan yang adil karena ia tidak mampu membela diri.

"Katakanlah ia memiliki alibi, ia sedang dalam operasi rahasia lain, bagaimana Anda bisa membuktikannya jika ia [tidak mampu] memberi tahu kami sebagai pengacara pembela di mana ia berada dan saksi mana yang bisa kami panggil?"

Jaksa berargumen kasus ini termasuk dalam kitab undang-undang Jerman tentang kejahatan terhadap hukum internasional sebagai kejahatan perang, sebagai "serangan dengan cara militer terhadap objek sipil".

Pembelaan memberitahu pengadilan bahwa ekstradisinya ke Jerman cacat karena tidak ada penyebutan pada saat itu mengenai tuduhan kejahatan perang.

Dalam bulan-bulan setelah bahan peledak menghancurkan tiga dari empat pipa gas di Laut Baltik di lepas pulau Bornholm pada 26 September 2022, kecurigaan Barat mengarah ke Moskow tanpa secara langsung menudingkan kesalahan.

Rusia telah menghentikan aliran gas ke Jerman di Nord Stream 1 beberapa minggu sebelum serangan, dan Nord Stream 2 belum pernah dinyalakan. Berlin telah membekukan proyek bernilai miliaran dolar tersebut sesaat sebelum invasi dan ada laporan tentang pergerakan angkatan laut Rusia yang mencurigakan sebelum ledakan.

Saat penyelidik dari Swedia, Denmark, dan Jerman berusaha mencari tahu siapa yang melakukan serangan, Vladimir Putin dari Rusia menuduh AS dan sekutunya Inggris, menyalahkan "bangsa Anglo-Saxon" - yang mereka bantah.

Akhirnya, setelah Denmark dan Swedia menutup penyelidikan mereka, jaksa Jerman berfokus pada sekelompok penyelam laut dalam yang menyewa kapal pesiar bernama Andromeda di pelabuhan Rostock, Jerman utara.

Mereka kemudian mengatakan bahwa "jejak bahan peledak bawah laut ditemukan dalam sampel yang diambil dari kapal tersebut".

Meskipun hubungan dengan Kyiv menjadi tegang, jaksa Jerman tetap melanjutkan kasus ini, dan pada Januari 2025 pengadilan federal Jerman memutuskan bahwa kasus ini termasuk dalam yurisdiksi teritorial Jerman, dan jaksa memiliki tanggung jawab untuk bertindak karena melibatkan "pengrusakan keamanan internal [Jerman]".

Volodymyr Zelensky dari Ukraina selalu menegaskan bahwa Ukraina "tidak ada hubungannya dengan [ledakan Nord Stream]", meskipun dalam dakwaan mereka jaksa Jerman menuduh para sabotase merancang rencana tersebut "bertindak atas perintah badan-badan negara Ukraina".

Persidangan Nord Stream: Bagaimana polisi Jerman mengikuti bukti - hingga ke Ukraina

Kasus ini telah menyoroti perbedaan pendapat tentang persidangan di Kyiv dan Berlin.

Oleksandr Merezhko, yang mengetuai Komite Urusan Luar Negeri di parlemen Ukraina, menunjukkan bahwa ledakan terjadi selama masa perang dengan Rusia dan "Nord Stream 2 tidak lain adalah alat yang digunakan Rusia untuk mempersiapkan perang".

Ia memberitahu BBC bahwa mereka tidak memiliki konfirmasi atas versi Jerman: "Itu salah satu versinya."

Namun, Stefan Meister, dari Dewan Hubungan Luar Negeri Jerman, mengatakan para kanselir berturut-turut di Berlin telah melakukan yang terbaik untuk menghilangkan politik dari kasus ini.

"Mereka berusaha untuk tidak membuat cerita besar dari ini, tidak memberikan terlalu banyak perhatian, menyerahkannya kepada institusi, kepada peradilan bahwa mereka akan menanganinya. Ini bukan kasus politik. Jadi mereka berusaha mendepolitisasinya," jelasnya.

Tiga dari empat pipa Nord Stream pecah akibat ledakan pada September 2022

Pada Agustus 2025, Kuznetsov ditangkap setelah check-in di sebuah hotel dekat resor Rimini di Adriatik Italia, oleh polisi yang bertindak berdasarkan surat perintah penangkapan Eropa yang dikeluarkan oleh jaksa federal di Jerman.

Setelah beberapa minggu pertempuran pengadilan melawan ekstradisi, ketika nama belakangnya muncul dalam dokumen pengadilan, Kuznetsov dipindahkan ke Jerman akhir tahun lalu.

Jaksa Jerman menuduh bahwa pada 2022 ia adalah perwira aktif di tentara Ukraina, dan ia memimpin sekelompok penyelam profesional, seorang kapten kapal, dan seorang ahli bahan peledak.

Sementara pertarungan hukumnya berlangsung di Italia, pria Ukraina lain bernama Volodymyr Zhuravlov berhasil menantang permintaan ekstradisi Jerman di pengadilan Polandia.

Dalam putusan yang sangat berbeda dari Mahkamah Agung Italia, hakim Polandia memerintahkan pembebasan Zhuravlov pada Oktober 2025, menyatakan bahwa serangan terhadap pipa tidak melanggar hukum, dan jika Ukraina mengorganisir misi bersenjata, itu "dibenarkan, rasional dan adil".

Meskipun ia dibebaskan oleh pengadilan di Warsawa, ia ditangkap Agustus lalu di Kroasia karena dicurigai sebagai tersangka yang "berpartisipasi dalam penyelaman yang diperlukan" untuk sabotase tersebut.

Bulan lalu, Kroasia menyetujui ekstradisinya, meskipun belum jelas kapan itu akan terjadi, dan apakah kasusnya bisa menjadi bagian dari persidangan Hamburg.

Meskipun sifat kasus ini sulit bagi Kyiv dan Berlin, anggota parlemen Ukraina Oleksandr Merezhko tidak percaya hal itu akan merusak hubungan karena "adalah kepentingan nasional terbaik Jerman untuk terus mendukung kami".

Hakim Polandia menolak mengekstradisi tersangka ledakan Nord Stream asal Ukraina

Perjalanan ke lokasi ledakan Nord Stream