Poland Denies German Extradition Request for Ukrainian Nord Stream Bombing Suspect

A Polish court denied the extradition of a man wanted by German authorities for his alleged involvement in the 2022 bombing of the Nord Stream pipeline.

The Details: Polish authorities detained Volodymyr Zhuravlov on September 30, who is wanted under a European arrest warrant issued by Germany in August 2024. Judge Dariusz Lubowski said the bombing was carried out during wartime, so it should not be viewed as an act of terror. Lubowski also ordered Zhuravlov to be released from custody. Italy, after an approval from a lower court, also denied the extradition of a man suspected of partaking in the sabotage last week, though the case is set to be assessed again by the same appeals court.

Key Quote: Lubowski said, “Blowing up critical infrastructure during a war – during a just, defensive war – is not sabotage but denotes a military action. These actions were not illegal. On the contrary, they were justified, rational and just.”

For Context: The Nord Stream pipeline was set to supply Germany with gas from Russia. During both Trump’s first term and the Biden administration, the US has stated opposition to it. In 2019, President Trump sanctioned the pipeline and companies that assisted Russia in delivering gas. When the pipeline was bombed in 2022, President Biden said the bombing was a “deliberate act of sabotage” and accused Russia of “pumping out disinformation and lies.” The Kremlin called it “an act of terrorism” that was unlikely to happen “without the involvement of a state of some kind.” In September 2024, Germany accused Poland of sabotaging its investigation into the matter.

Past Reporting: In February 2023, journalist Seymour Hersh reported that the US Navy blew up the pipeline with the help of Norway. In June 2023, The Washington Post (Lean Left bias) reported that the CIA knew in June 2022 of a Ukrainian plot to bomb the pipeline. In November 2023, The Post and German outlet Der Spiegel accused an already-imprisoned Ukrainian colonel of coordinating the attacks. In August 2024, The Wall Street Journal (Center) shared the “real story” of who sabotaged the pipeline, reporting that it was a six-member crew backed by “a handful of senior Ukrainian military officers and businessmen” posing to be on a “pleasure cruise.” In October 2024, a Danish harbormaster told the newspaper Politiken that US warships were operating in the area with their transponders turned off, days before the sabotage, and ordered local officials to stay clear.

How The Media Covered It: Bloomberg (Lean Left) described the case as “politically charged given Warsaw’s staunch support for Ukraine and prior criticism of German dependence on Russian energy” and noted Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s previous rhetoric on the matter. Kremlin-funded RT (Lean Right) noted that “Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested the US likely orchestrated the operation,” something not mentioned in Western media coverage.

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