A Polish judge has refused to extradite a Ukrainian citizen – suspected by Germany of sabotaging the Nord Stream gas pipelines in September 2022 – arguing that if Ukraine was responsible for the attack, then it was a just act.
Volodymyr Zhuravlyov, who was brought to Warsaw District Court in handcuffs, was detained in Poland last month on a European arrest warrant.
Judge Dariusz Lubowski ordered his release, after a ruling that was met with a ripple of surprise from the crowd in court and a smile from the man in the dock.
Mr Zhuravlyov, along with others, is suspected of planting explosives deep beneath the Baltic Sea on the pipelines leading from Russia to Germany.
Blame for the blasts, which crippled a long-controversial energy supply line from Russia to Germany, initially focused on Moscow until signs of Ukrainian involvement began to emerge.
Officials in Kyiv have repeatedly denied any role.
Extradition cases within the EU are usually quick and straightforward, but the Nord Stream case is proving to be very different.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, whose government is a key ally of war-torn Ukraine, immediately supported the ruling. Case closed, he wrote on social media.
Inside the district courthouse in Warsaw, Judge Lubowski announced his decision to the gathered media, family, and legal representatives. He highlighted the importance of the context of the war in Ukraine, quoting philosophical figures like Aristotle and Saint Thomas Aquinas to support his argument for Ukraine's self-defense rights.
The judge noted that the pipeline attack had deprived the enemy of billions of euros and weakened Russia's military potential, framing actions taken during wartime differently from those in peacetime.
Judge Lubowski reaffirmed that his ruling was based on legal principles rather than emotional or political sentiments, even raising questions regarding Germany's jurisdiction as the explosions occurred in international waters on pipelines predominantly owned by Russia.
Upon his release, Mr. Zhuravlyov expressed relief after a challenging period in custody, with his family planning to remain in Poland.
The case highlights ongoing tensions and legal complexities surrounding the fallout from the war in Ukraine, with another Ukrainian suspect, Serhiy Kuznetsov, facing extradition challenges in Italy relating to the same incident.
