Reports detail tough conditions for Ukrainian accused of Nord Stream sabotage in Italy

Kuznetsov ended up in a special wing of the prison that houses the most dangerous offenders. He was held with seven Islamic militants who had fought for the Islamic State. “The locals treat me with respect, call me comandante,” the outlet Babel quoted from the Ukrainian’s letter to his family.

Unlike the IS militants, Kuznetsov was not allowed into the yard for walks, was taken out in heavy shackles instead of standard restraints, and his communication with his family was limited to 20 minutes per month by phone only. Later, thanks to attorney Mykola Katerynchuk, that time was increased to 4–6 hours, and he also secured in-person visits. Kuznetsov’s wife, Halyna, visited him in Italy four times, Babel reported. Kuznetsov’s children have not seen or spoken to him since his arrest.

Kuznetsov was detained on Aug. 21, 2025, when uniformed officers entered a tent the family was staying in at a campground in the Italian town of San Clemente in the Rimini province. They took all the family’s passports for “verification” and did not return his. According to his wife, police called about 30 minutes later asking her to pick up his belongings, which officers had taken without explanation.

During his first interrogation, Kuznetsov learned that German prosecutors suspected him of blowing up two strings of the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline and one of Nord Stream 2. Germany had issued a warrant for his arrest on Aug. 18, 2025.

Katerynchuk told Babel that during questioning, Italian authorities — citing letters from German counterparts — threatened Kuznetsov with 15 years in prison if he did not confess and agree to a plea deal. In a letter to his family, Kuznetsov said he denied everything because at the time he was serving with the Ukrainian Armed Forces “in a completely different place,” prompting Italian authorities to request additional evidence from Germany.

Germany accuses the Ukrainian of three Criminal Code offenses: sabotage aimed at undermining constitutional order; causing an explosion; and destruction of infrastructure such as bridges, dams and railways.

Due to poor food and his hunger strike, Kuznetsov has lost 10 kilograms in the Italian prison.

On Nov. 10 it was reported that Kuznetsov, who had been on a hunger strike for 10 days while awaiting a decision on his possible extradition to Germany in the Nord Stream case, wrote a letter saying he was being treated like “criminal number one” and held with suspected ISIS members in a high-security facility.

On Nov. 11, the Italian outlet Ansa, citing his attorney, reported that Kuznetsov had ended his hunger strike.

Nord Stream explosions and arrests of Ukrainians

During the night of Sept. 26, 2022, three of the four strings of the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines were destroyed by explosions in international waters of the Baltic Sea. The pipelines were not operating at the time but were filled with technical gas.

Poland and Ukraine blamed Russia, while the Kremlin accused “Anglo-Saxons” and denied involvement.

In February 2024, Danish authorities closed their investigation due to insufficient grounds to pursue a criminal case; Sweden reached a similar conclusion.

On Aug. 27, 2025, Die Zeit, ARD and Süddeutsche Zeitung reported that German investigators had identified all suspects in the Nord Stream sabotage and issued arrest warrants for six Ukrainian nationals — four divers, an explosives specialist, a ship captain and the alleged leader of the sabotage group.

On Sept. 30, it emerged that Polish authorities had detained Ukrainian citizen Volodymyr Zhuravlov, wanted by Germany over suspected involvement. Poland’s National Security Bureau chief Sławomir Cenckiewicz and Prime Minister Donald Tusk publicly opposed extradition, saying it was not in Poland’s national interest.

Kuznetsov, also suspected in the case, was detained in Italy during a family vacation under a European arrest warrant. He has since been held in a high-security prison in northern Italy.