Warsaw opposed Nord Stream from the outset, Tusk said, while Berlin changed course “too late.” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has said Germany should not prosecute suspects accused of blowing up the Nord Stream pipelines, adding those who built the Russian gas links “should be ashamed, not those who disabled them.” His remarks followed the arrest in Croatia on Wednesday of a Ukrainian suspect in the 2022 Nord Stream sabotage case under a European Arrest Warrant issued by Germany. The suspect, identified by German prosecutors as Vladimir Z., was previously detained in Poland in September 2025, but a Warsaw court refused to extradite him to Germany and ordered his release the following month. Asked on Thursday whether he still believed the suspect should not face criminal liability, Tusk said he had not changed his position. ‘They changed their mind, but too late’ Tusk told reporters that Poland had long opposed the Nord Stream 2 project and had done everything it could to prevent its construction, warning that it would deepen Europe’s dependence on Russian energy. “Germany had a different opinion at the time. They changed their mind, but too late,” he said. Tusk added: “But Germany should certainly not prosecute those who, in a situation where their country has been attacked, take one action or another. “I will not change my mind here, and I believe that those who built this pipeline should be ashamed, not those who disabled it.” The suspect, who denies involvement and says he was in Ukraine at the time of the explosions, is wanted by German federal prosecutors on suspicion of jointly causing an explosion, anti-constitutional sabotage and the destruction of structures. German prosecutors allege that he was a trained scuba diver and part of a group that planted explosives on the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines near the Danish island of Bornholm. Nord Stream sabotage Germany had faced years of criticism from Poland and other Central and Eastern European countries over the pipelines, which critics said increased Europe’s dependence on Russian energy and gave Moscow greater leverage over the continent. The two Nord Stream pipelines were built to transport Russian natural gas directly to Germany via the Baltic Sea. Explosions in September 2022, seven months after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, ruptured three of the four lines making up Nord Stream 1 and 2. No one has claimed responsibility for the blasts. Kyiv has denied any state involvement, saying its own investigation has so far found no evidence that Ukrainian authorities or officials were behind the explosions. Nord Stream 1 had been a major route for Russian gas exports to Europe, while Nord Stream 2 had been completed but had not entered commercial service. German prosecutors have said the aim of the alleged attack was to permanently halt gas deliveries through the pipelines and prevent Russia from using natural-gas revenues to finance its war against Ukraine. Second suspect German prosecutors have also charged former Ukrainian military officer Serhii K., whom they accuse of leading the group that carried out the attack. He was arrested in Italy in August 2025 and transferred to Germany in November. Prosecutors charged him in July with orchestrating the blasts while allegedly acting on behalf of Ukrainian state entities. Serhii K. has denied any involvement.
