Volodymyr Zelenskyy has insisted the Ukrainian government did not take part in the 2022 bombing of the Nord Stream undersea gas pipelines. Ukraine’s president said Germany was “well aware that Ukraine did not stand behind the execution or the very conception of this operation”. On Wednesday a Ukrainian man was arrested in Croatia on suspicion of taking part in the bombings. He was reportedly working on a film about the plot when arrested. German prosecutors allege he collaborated with another Ukrainian man who was arrested in Italy in 2025.
German prosecutors allege the Nord Stream bombings were ordered by the Ukrainian state. Zelenskky has always denied his country’s involvement. He said Kyiv was helping Berlin with its investigation and hoped it would not cause a rift in relations. “It is very important for us not to lose our partnership, not to lose the trust of European countries that have been helping Ukraine since the very beginning of this war.” The pipelines were built to carry natural gas from Russia to Germany.
The “coalition of the willing” supporting Ukraine will meet in Kyiv of Monday. The meeting will be jointly chaired by the leaders of Britain, France and Germany. Ukraine on Monday celebrates independence while also marking exactly four and a half years since the Russian full-scale invasion of 24 February 2022. Andy Burnham, Britain’s prime minister, is set to announce that the British government will let defence firm MBDA release classified information so Ukraine and France can set up local production of the long-range Storm Shadow/Scalp missile, writes Kiran Stacey and Dan Sabbagh. Emmanuel Macron, the French president, has pledged Paris will deliver new the SAMP/T interceptor system, said to be capable of shooting down some types of ballistic missiles.
