German authorities have reportedly identified all members of the commando unit allegedly responsible for the explosions that damaged the Nord Stream pipelines in September 2022. According to reports in “Die Zeit”, “Süddeutsche Zeitung” and ARD, investigators have succeeded in naming a total of seven suspects.
Six of the identified individuals are Ukrainian nationals and arrest warrants have been issued for them. The seventh suspect is believed to have died in eastern Ukraine in December 2024 while fighting against the Russian army.
The group is alleged to have detonated several sections of the Nord Stream pipeline in September 2022. The reports detail that the commando consisted of a skipper, a coordinator, a demolitions expert and four divers. They are believed to have travelled from Rostock to the locations in the Baltic Sea aboard the sailing yacht “Andromeda”. One of the divers reportedly joined the group later and is under suspicion of previously planning an attack on a different Russian gas pipeline that ultimately failed. A suspected member of the commando, also identified as a Ukrainian soldier, received military training at the Bundeswehr facility in Wildflecken last year.
Investigations are also strengthening the suspicion that the group may have conducted the operation with the assistance of Ukrainian authorities. The suspects reportedly travelled through Poland to Germany using authentic Ukrainian passports containing false names. One of the suspects was transported from Poland back to Ukraine in a vehicle belonging to the Ukrainian military attaché last summer, allegedly to evade arrest. Last week, the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office secured the arrest of the alleged coordinator of the sabotage operation in Italy, with preparations underway for their extradition to Germany.