Croatian court approves extradition of Nord Stream suspect Volodymyr Z. to Germany
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A court in Pula, Croatia, approved the extradition of Ukrainian national Volodymyr Z. to Germany on September 18, with the decision communicated five days later. The suspect faces charges in Germany over the September 2022 sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines. His defense called the ruling biased and political and plans to appeal.
Key Facts
- The Pula court approved the extradition on September 18 and notified the parties in writing five days later.
- Volodymyr Z. was arrested in Croatia on August 19, 2026, while consulting a film crew working on a documentary about the Nord Stream explosions.
- German federal prosecutors concluded by July 2026 that the pipeline sabotage was planned on the orders of Ukrainian state bodies.
- Poland refused to extradite Volodymyr Z. after his arrest there in September 2025.
Extradition Decision
The Pula court approved the extradition of Volodymyr Z. to Germany on September 18, with written notification issued five days later. Croatia's Interior Ministry must hand the suspect over to German authorities once the ruling becomes final. Ukrainian lawyer Mykola Katerynchuk called the decision biased and political and said the defense will appeal. The court rejected defense arguments that the case should go to the International Criminal Court and that a fair trial in Germany was doubtful.
Nord Stream Investigation
Three of the four Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 pipeline strings in the Baltic Sea were blown up on September 26, 2022. By July 2026, Germany's Federal Prosecutor's Office concluded the sabotage plan was developed on the orders of Ukrainian state bodies. German investigators identified seven suspects; one died fighting in Ukraine, and two — Serhiy K. and Volodymyr Z. — were arrested by autumn 2026. German authorities treat the pipeline attack as a war crime under international law because it targeted civilian energy infrastructure.
Arrest and Polish Refusal
Volodymyr Z. was detained in Poland in September 2025, but a Polish court refused to extradite him to Germany. German investigators had tried to arrest him in Poland in 2024, but he left for Ukraine before that could happen. He was arrested in Croatia on August 19, 2026, and a Croatian court issued an arrest warrant the next day. The Croatian court ruled that Poland's refusal does not bind Croatia, which must apply its own national law to the European arrest warrant.
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