The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) will hold an urgent meeting on the investigation into the Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 sabotage on August 26 at Russia's request, Dmitry Polyansky, acting Permanent Representative of Russia to the United Nations, informed.
" Amid reports of the arrest of a suspect in organizing terrorist attacks targeting the Nord Stream pipeline in September 2022, Russia has requested an emergency meeting of the Security Council. We will note the delay and lack of transparency in the German investigation to the Security Council. Panama, which holds the rotating presidency of the Security Council this month, has scheduled a meeting at 4:00 p.m. on August 26, New York time," the Russian diplomat said on Telegram.
On August 21, the 49-year-old Ukrainian man, identified by German prosecutors as Serhii K and named by the media as Sehrii Kuznetsov, was arrested in Italy under a European arrest warrant issued in Germany.
A Ukrainian man suspected of being involved in organizing the attacks on the Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea in September 2022.
German prosecutors accused the man of being a member of a group that planted explosives in gas pipelines near Bornholm, Denmark. Serhii K is seen as one of the coordinators of the attack on the pipeline carrying Russian gas to Germany.
The Ukrainian suspect in coordinating the attacks on the Nord Stream pipeline has served in the Ukrainian Secret Service and the Ukrainian Military Special Forces.
It is not yet clear whether Serhii K was still serving in the army at the time of the 2022 gas pipeline attack. The Ukrainian government has so far denied any involvement in the Nord Stream attack.
According to many sources familiar with the matter, Serhii K was arrested at the 3-star hotel La Pescaccia in San Clement, Rimini province, Italy. When military officers from the Italian Carabinieri investigation and combat units raided the suspect's bedroom, Serhii K did not seek to resist when arrested.
Serhii K's residence was later searched, and hotel staff were also questioned, but no further evidence or weapons were found.
Serhii K arrived on the Adriatic coast of Italy earlier this week to vacation with his wife and two children. The suspect's family has a travel ticket issued in Poland.
Nord Stream suspect arrived in Italy on a car with a Ukrainian license plate on August 12. The suspect used a real passport to book a hotel room, giving the Italian police an alert to arrest him.
After being arrested, Serhii K was taken to Rimini Police Station and transferred to a prison in Bologna on August 22 while awaiting the appellate court's extradition verdict.
Bologna Deputy Prosecutor Licia Scagliarini approved the German judiciary's request to extradite the suspect, but Serhii K said in court of appeal that he did not agree to be extradited to Germany. The suspect said he was in Ukraine at the time of the Nord Stream explosion.
This could delay the extradition. The decision will now be made by an appeal judge in Bologna. The next trial will take place on September 3.
In Germany, the Ukrainian man will face charges of collusion in the blast, sabotage and destruction of structures.
The Ukrainian suspect could face up to 15 years in prison in Germany.
