Ukraine did not participate in planning or carrying out the operation to sabotage the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. Kyiv is prepared to cooperate with foreign law enforcement agencies to establish all the circumstances surrounding the case.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made the statement during the Ukraine-Nordic-Baltic Eight summit in Kyiv, Ukrinform reported.
“Ukraine has never officially participated in any operation related to the sabotage of Nord Stream 2. This is not a matter of who wants or does not want something. An investigation is underway. There is a case, there are charges and relevant witnesses. The process is ongoing,” Zelenskyy said.
According to the president, Ukrainian officials discussed the matter with the German side at a high level. Zelenskyy said German officials were aware that Ukraine had not been behind either the planning or execution of the operation.
He added that Ukraine’s Prosecutor General’s Office and Ministry of Foreign Affairs were open to cooperation with their foreign counterparts.
“It is very important for us not to lose our partnership or the trust of the European countries that have supported Ukraine since the beginning of this war. We are therefore completely open to joint investigative steps and efforts to establish all the circumstances surrounding those events,” Zelenskyy said.
On August 19, Germany’s Federal Prosecutor’s Office announced the arrest in Croatia of a Ukrainian citizen suspected of involvement in the sabotage. Investigators allege that he is a professional diver and was part of a group that planted explosives on the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines near the Danish island of Bornholm in September 2022.
On August 21, a Croatian court ordered the Ukrainian citizen to remain in custody pending a decision on his extradition to Germany.
The explosions occurred in the Baltic Sea on September 26, 2022. Three of the four Nord Stream pipeline strings were severely damaged.
