Germany Adds War Crime to Nord Stream Warrant

Germany has renewed a European arrest warrant for Ukrainian citizen Volodymyr Zhuravlev, who is suspected of involvement in the sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipelines, adding a new “war crime” qualification, according to Ukrainska Pravda.

Zhuravlev’s lawyers said the change prompted a Croatian court to postpone a hearing on his extradition to Germany that had been scheduled for 4 September.

The German Federal Prosecutor’s Office announced his arrest in Croatia on 19 August. According to media reports, Zhuravlev was detained while filming a Hollywood movie about the Nord Stream sabotage titled Snake Island. He had previously evaded arrest and extradition to Germany twice.

Another Ukrainian linked to the case, Serhiy Kuznetsov, is already in German custody. German prosecutors charged Kuznetsov in June, stating that he and other members of the group had acted as Ukrainian military personnel.

(mja)