Lubinets calls on Germany to ensure impartial investigation, oversight of Ukrainian citizen Kuznetsov’s rights
Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets appealed to the German Institute for Human Rights and the Federal Prosecutor's Office, calling for an impartial investigation and oversight of the rights of Ukrainian citizen Serhiy Kuznetsov, a suspect in the Nord Stream gas pipeline sabotage case.
"Today, we officially appealed to our colleague at the German Institute for Human Rights to pay special attention to this case and ensure that Kuznetsov's rights are respected upon his arrival in Germany," Lubinets wrote on Telegram.
He also appealed to the German Federal Prosecutor's Office to ensure the most impartial, reasoned, and objective investigation and subsequent prosecution, free from political labels and pressure, based solely on evidence and within the rule of law.
Lubinets emphasized that these appeals highlight key aspects. Specifically, Serhiy has the right to decent conditions of detention, access to medical care, communication with his lawyers and family, full translation, and an understanding of all procedural actions.
"Respect for the presumption of innocence and fair trial standards is also mandatory. We specifically emphasized that at the time of the events he is accused of, Serhiy was serving in the Ukrainian Armed Forces, meaning the relevant guarantees of international humanitarian law must apply to this case," he noted.
According to Lubinets, his advisor will also be involved in monitoring this process in Germany, as has already become practice, and the ombudsman's advisors work successfully in almost every EU country where similar sensitive situations involving Ukrainian citizens arise.
"My team is already preparing to continuously monitor the situation in Germany. We remain in contact with Kuznetsov's family and lawyers, and will monitor the conditions of his detention, the progress of the investigation, and the trial. If we see signs of violations of his rights, we will respond with all available means," the ombudsman emphasized.
As reported, Italy's Supreme Court upheld a lower court's decision to extradite a Ukrainian suspect in the Nord Stream gas pipeline sabotage case to Germany, Deutsche Welle (DW) reported on Wednesday, citing information from the Ukrainian citizen's lawyer.
On September 16, the Bologna Court of Appeal (Italy) ruled to extradite former Ukrainian captain Kuznetsov, who is accused of blowing up the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines, to Germany. His lawyer immediately filed an appeal. He stated in court that he was in Ukraine on the day of the pipeline explosions.
Kuznetsov, 49, was arrested on August 21 on the basis of a European arrest warrant issued by the German Federal Court of Justice at a country hotel in San Clemente, near the Italian city of Rimini, after checking in.
The twin-pipe Nord Stream 1 pipeline, running through the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany, with a total capacity of over 55 billion cubic meters of gas per year, was commissioned in 2011-2012. The parallel Nord Stream 2 was intended to transport a similar volume of gas; however, despite its completion, it never entered service due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. In September 2022, an explosion depressurized two lines of Nord Stream 1 and one of Nord Stream 2 near the Danish island of Bornholm. Russia has opened a criminal case under the article on international terrorism. Germany is also continuing its investigation into the explosions, while Sweden closed its investigation in February 2024.
