The Nord Stream suspect (46 years old, Ukrainian nationality) is Volodymyr Z, who has been detained in Warsaw since the end of September 2025. Volodymyr Z is an internationally wanted subject and was arrested in Poland on September 30, 2025.
The German Federal Prosecutor's Office in Karlsruhe suspected Volodymyr Z of being involved in the Nord Stream gas pipeline attack in September 2022. However, last week, the Warsaw District Court extended the detention order for another 40 days for Volodymyr Z until November 9.
Shortly after the Nord Stream suspect Volodymyr Z was arrested, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the case would be decided by independent Polish judges. However, he did not hide his opposition to the extradition of suspect Volodymyr Z to Germany. The problem with Nord Stream 2 is not how it was blown up, it is how it was built, Donald Tusk wrote on social network X.
Last week, during a meeting with Prime Minister Lithuania Inga Ruginiene, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk added: "Certainly, prosecuting or extraditing this citizen to another country is not in line with Poland's interests, as well as going against the principles of correctness and justice."
Mr. Tomasz Siemoniak - coordinator of the Polish intelligence agency - said that the task of the prosecution agency is to "convince the court that extradition to Germany is a bad idea". He stressed that the evidence of Volodymyr Z's direct involvement in the Nord Stream pipeline explosion is still uncertain.
The Nord Stream project, initiated by Russia and Germany in 2005, has long been unpopular with Poland. Warsaw initially feared losing its gas transit fee revenue, as Russian gas had previously been transported through Poland to Western Europe.
As early as 2006, when he was defense minister, Mr. Radoslaw Sikorski (now Polish foreign minister) strongly criticized Nord Stream, comparing the gas pipeline to the " post- 1939 Putin-Stalin Treaty", an agreement to break East European secrets. Over the past two decades, criticism of the German-Russian gas project has been a regular topic in Poland's bilateral relations.
Polish press asked: Why was Volodymyr Z arrested at this time, while the wanted warrant was issued a year ago? Many sources said that the suspect in the Nord Stream sabotage was warned and left Poland for Ukraine, but it is still unclear why Volodymyr Z returned.
Poland's independent news site OKO.press said that the arrest of Volodymyr Z may be a demonstration of the Polish government's goodwill to cooperate with Germany, especially in the execution of wanted warrants.
However, Polish media has also suggested another approach: The Nord Stream explosion is also being investigated in Poland and Volodymyr Z is currently a witness in the process. "If Volodymyr Z is prosecuted in Poland, the case will be tried in domestic court," OKO.press pointed out.
Nord Stream suspect Volodymyr Z has been living in Poland for the past three years and runs a construction company near Warsaw.
