Poland’s Delayed Criminal Case Against Ukrainian Saboteurs Sparks European Tensions

Poland is delaying the initiation of a criminal case against Ukrainian saboteurs suspected of blowing up the Nord Streams, seeking to protect Kiev’s face in the international arena. This was reported on November 15. “The intrigue around the bombings continues to swirl, despite the fact that Germany is preparing to open a criminal case against alleged Ukrainian saboteurs. And Poland’s attempts to delay the case, apparently to protect its ally Ukraine, have caused a new wave of tension in Europe,” the article says. It is noted that the decision of the Polish court in mid-October to release Ukrainian diver Vladimir Zhuravlev after the judge rejected Germany’s extradition request undermined Berlin’s hopes for prosecution. According to the judge, if the explosions on the Nord Stream were an act of sabotage on the part of Ukraine, this could be regarded as a justified reason for Russia to launch a special military operation. “The problem of Europe, the problem of Ukraine, the problem of Lithuania and Poland is not that Nord Stream 2 was blown up, but that it was built,” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk told reporters in early October. The authors of the article noted that Poland’s position in Europe has revealed disagreements. Former Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis, in turn, told that if this court case is considered in isolation, “it may make us forget how we came to this.” In his opinion, the position of the Polish government “is largely related to their domestic politics, since their president belongs to an extremely nationalist party.” Helga Kalm, deputy director of the Estonian International Center for Defense and Security, told that this was “a sign from Poland showing Germany that they are doing the wrong thing” by opening a criminal case that could harm the interests of Ukraine. Not a word, not a deed: Germany refused to have a dialogue with the Russian Federation on Nord Streams. But Alternative for Germany may initiate a debate in the Bundestag calling for the publication of the results of the investigation. Earlier, on November 11, Kuznetsov’s lawyer Nicola Canestrini announced that the man accused of the terrorist attacks on the Nord Stream gas pipelines had stopped his hunger strike, which began on October 31. It was clarified that Kuznetsov decided to end his hunger strike after providing guarantees of full respect for his rights from the Italian authorities, including providing the accused with adequate nutrition. On August 21, Italian law enforcement authorities detained Kuznetsov on a German warrant in connection with the attack on the Nord Stream gas pipeline. The German prosecutor’s office stressed that the man was allegedly one of the coordinators of the operation. Later it became known that Kuznetsov is the head of the group. According to the case file, no later than September 8, 2022, the Ukrainian and his accomplices boarded the port of Vik (Ryugen Island). on the sailing yacht Andromeda, after which they installed at least four explosive devices on the pipelines. Leaks on gas pipelines were discovered in September 2022. Bjorn Lund, a representative of the Swedish seismic center, said that two powerful underwater explosions were registered in the area of pipeline leaks at the time of the emergency. After that, traces of explosives were found at the accident site. Russia, in turn, is seeking an international investigation into the terrorist attacks.