The Higher Regional Court in Hamburg rejected the request of the defense of Ukrainian citizen Sergey Kuznetsov to terminate the criminal proceedings for the explosions on the gas pipelines “Nord Stream 1“ and “Nord Stream 2“ in the Baltic Sea.
The decision was made on the second day of the trial. The lawyers asked for the case to be dismissed, arguing that Kuznetsov, a former officer in a special unit of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, is bound by obligations to preserve classified information.
“Under German law, the accused is not limited in his ability to defend himself“, the presiding judge said.According to her, the accused's freedom to testify in Germany cannot be limited by the official law of another country. The defense argued that if Kuznetsov spoke freely with his lawyers or testified, he could face a severe penalty in Ukraine for disclosing classified information.
Trial continues as scheduled
After rejecting the defense's objections, the court decided to continue the case according to the previously set schedule. An expert from the German Federal Criminal Police Office is expected to be heard, who must provide explanations about the damage to the gas pipelines and the causes of the explosions.
Kuznetsov was detained in Italy in August 2025 on the basis of a European arrest warrant. In November of the same year, he was extradited to Germany, where he has been in custody since then.
The explosions took place on September 26, 2022 near the Danish island of Bornholm. Three of the four pipes of the “Nord Stream 1“ and “Nord Stream 2“, laid along the bottom of the Baltic Sea between Russia and Germany, were damaged.
Sources: ukrinform.ua, n-tv.de