On Friday, a Polish court decided to refuse the extradition of a Ukrainian suspect wanted by Germany in connection with the explosions of the Nord Stream pipeline in 2022, and ordered his immediate release from custody.
As writes Rzeczpospolita, Ukrainian Volodymyr Zhuravlev was arrested in Poland at the end of September on a European arrest warrant issued by a German court.
The refusal of extradition is justified by the fact that the German side did not provide any evidence in this case. In addition, the court noted that the defense of the accused expressed distrust towards the German justice system and concerns that the case might be politically motivated.
«The person being prosecuted, if they are the perpetrator of the crime, has the right to functional immunity, which extends to actions committed in connection with their activities for the benefit of the Ukrainian state», — stated Judge Dariusz Lubowski.
According to the findings of the German investigation, he, along with six other Ukrainians, is involved in the sabotage of the underwater pipeline from Russia to Germany. As a result of the explosions, three out of four strands of the pipeline, which was not operational at the time of the explosions, were damaged. Germany has brought charges under several articles, including terrorism.
Earlier, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated that the extradition of Zhuravlev does not align with Warsaw's interests, but the decision will be made by the court. He also noted that the problem was not that the underwater pipelines running from Russia to Germany were blown up in September 2022, but that they were built.
This week, the Italian Court of Cassation overturned the decision to extradite Ukrainian citizen Serhiy Kuznetsov to Germany, who is suspected of coordinating the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines in the Baltic Sea in September 2022. Kuznetsov was the first arrested in this case.
Photo: Reuters