The portal Niezalezna.pl spoke with Ukrainian academic Dr. Jan Matkowski and former Polish ambassador to Kyiv Jan Piekło about the arrest of a Ukrainian citizen accused by German authorities of involvement in the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipeline. Both doubt the arrested man’s responsibility, though they differ on the causes and consequences of this mysterious operation. According to Dr. Matkowski, the arrest could be an opportunity to verify whether the Russians were behind the operation. Piekło, meanwhile, points out that the pipeline’s destruction interrupted “the machine that was pumping money to the Russians for armaments.”
On Tuesday, based on a European Arrest Warrant, 46-year-old Ukrainian citizen Volodymyr Z. was detained in the Pruszków district of Poland. He is suspected of involvement in the Nord Stream explosion. Piotr Skiba, spokesman for the Warsaw District Prosecutor’s Office, said there is “a high probability” that prosecutors will ask the court to place him in temporary custody. He added that the decision on potential extradition will be made by the court within 100 days, once the relevant German documents are received.
Still Little Is Known
Ukrainian academic Dr. Jan Matkowski told Niezalezna.pl that this is not the first arrest in the case, pointing to a previous one in Italy.
“Poland is following international agreements, but whether the Ukrainian citizen will actually be handed over to Germany, we shall see,” he said.
“This will be an opportunity to check whether, as the media say, Ukrainian intelligence agents were involved in the pipeline’s explosion. I don’t believe Ukrainians organized this. And if it was organized by Ukrainian hands, then at that time it was more in Russia’s interest than in Ukraine’s,” he assessed.
Matkowski emphasized that Ukraine has officially avoided commenting on the pipeline sabotage.
“There were earlier statements, including from Volodymyr Zelensky, that Ukraine’s authorities had nothing to do with it. Later, international press reports claimed that Ukrainians had organized it, allegedly led by Gen. Zaluzhny and other top military officers,” he recalled.
A False Flag Operation
“I wouldn’t condemn this arrest, because it would be good for the international public to know the truth—whether it was Ukrainians or perhaps Russians using Ukrainians. Ignorance and lack of evidence fuel myths and rumors. I am convinced that Ukraine’s authorities had nothing to do with it. If a group of Ukrainians was involved, it is important to know who gave the orders and who financed it. Was it not perhaps Russia, acting under a foreign flag, to cut Germany off from helping Ukraine and continuing support?” he explained.
He also questioned whether, in wartime, highly specialized Ukrainian intelligence professionals with unique skills would really be vacationing in Italy or Poland, rather than taking part in underwater operations targeting Russia’s Black Sea fleet.
“Yet supposedly two intelligence specialists were traveling with their families across Europe. That is puzzling, and it would be good for this investigation to get to the bottom of who organized and financed it,” Matkowski concluded.
In Ukrainians’ Eyes, He Could Be a Hero
Former Polish ambassador to Ukraine Jan Piekło also doubted that Volodymyr Z. was among those who blew up the Russo-German pipeline.
“If he really did it—which I don’t believe, since I think it’s more complicated—then in Ukrainians’ eyes he is a national hero. He tried to stop the machine that was pumping money to Russia for weapons and enabling the occupation of Ukrainian territory,” he said.
He reminded that “Poland is an ally of Ukraine and should remember that.”
“Those who should really be held accountable are the ones who decided that Nord Stream 1 and 2 were a great idea, thereby helping Russia arm itself and launch aggression against Ukraine,” the diplomat argued.
He specified that he meant the governments of Angela Merkel and Gerhard Schröder, noting that Schröder “was the architect of the project and later the head of the consortium.”
Sikorski Should Thank Him
Piekło called it a “misunderstanding” to blame Ukrainians for the pipeline’s destruction.
“Even if they did do it, they were acting in defense of their country—cutting off Russia’s access to the dirty money generated by gas deliveries to Germany,” he explained.
Referring to Radosław Sikorski’s post on X, in which the MEP thanked the United States for the Nord Stream 2 sabotage—implying U.S. involvement—Piekło added:
“If it turned out that Volodymyr Z. was one of the people who carried out the operation, then now Minister Sikorski should personally thank him. Let’s not forget that Sikorski’s post appeared on his profile, but it quickly disappeared,” Piekło reminded.