Hamburg (AFP) - A lawyer for a Ukrainian accused of blowing up the Nord Stream pipelines supplying Russian gas to western Europe said Wednesday Moscow used the network to exert political and economic pressure, as the former military officer’s trial opened in Germany.

Sergiy Kuznietsov is the first person to go on trial over the 2022 sabotage. The 50-year-old is accused of leading a Ukrainian team of divers and an explosives expert to bomb Nord Stream, seven months after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Prosecutor Stefan Schmidt told the Hamburg court that Kuznietsov, acting on behalf of the Ukrainian state, had committed a war crime by “using military means” to hit civilian targets.

He is also charged with attacking civilian infrastructure and causing an explosion.

Defence lawyer Nicola Canestrini told the court there was no clear evidence linking the former special forces officer to the sabotage.

He also accused Russia of using the pipelines as a political and economic “weapon”.

Russia had exerted immense pressure on Germany at the time, and gas markets went haywire before Moscow turned off the tap.

“In September 2022, the pipelines were not supplying anyone with heat,” Canestrini said.

“They were a means of exerting pressure in a war,” added Canestrini, and also said Russia was guilty of committing war crimes, rather than his client.

- Dwindling gas supplies -

Three out of four pipelines were seriously damaged by the blasts under the Baltic Sea in September 2022.

Before the sabotage rendered them inoperable, Russia had steadily reduced gas supplies through the pipelines to Europe in apparent retaliation for sanctions imposed over its invasion.

While some in the West were quick to accuse Russia of sabotaging its own export route, German investigators identified a cell of Ukrainians they say were the alleged perpetrators.

According to the indictment, Kuznietsov entered Germany in early September 2022 using a forged Ukrainian passport and, together with the rest of the sabotage team, boarded a rented yacht in the German Baltic Sea port city of Rostock.

The yacht was allegedly loaded with large quantities of military-grade explosives, and set sail for a spot where the pipelines ran under the Baltic Sea near the Danish island of Bornholm.

Divers then allegedly planted explosive charges equipped with timers on the pipelines, which blew up several days later.

Prosecutor Schmidt said the bombing aimed to ensure deliveries via the pipelines would be “permanently halted”, so Russia could no longer use revenues from gas sales to finance its war efforts.

- ‘What are war crimes?’ -

The defendant will not testify during the trial, with his lawyers saying confidentiality rules prevent former Ukrainian special forces personnel from speaking publicly about their activities.

The pipelines were built and owned by a corporate consortium led by Russian energy giant Gazprom.

At the time of the blasts, none were in operation.

Moscow had already suspended gas deliveries to western Europe through Nord Stream 1, comprising two pipelines.

Nord Stream 2, also made up of two pipelines, had only just been completed and never entered service.

Kyiv has consistently denied orchestrating the sabotage, but has made no secret of its satisfaction with the results.

Another suspect, partially identified as Volodymyr Z., was arrested in Croatia in August and is accused of taking part in the sabotage as a diver.

A Croatian court has approved his extradition to Germany although he is appealing the decision.

Late Wednesday the suspect’s Croatian lawyer Ivan Grzic said his client had sought a political asylum there.

The interior ministry will determine whether Croatia has jurisdiction over the case, he said.

If so, the Ukrainian will be interviewed and asked to provide relevant documents, the lawyer added.

Since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Germany has become Kyiv’s leading military backer and regularly accuses Russia of sabotage and espionage on its soil.

The investigation into the Nord Stream sabotage has proved awkward for diplomatic ties, but German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul noted Wednesday that President Volodymyr Zelensky had said Ukraine was not responsible.

“I am waiting for the outcome of these proceedings, and then the government will take a position,” he said.

Ukraine’s supporters in Germany have also been unhappy with the trial however, and a small group protested outside the Hamburg trial Wednesday.

They held placards saying: “Russia is a terrorist” and “What are war crimes? A blown-up pipeline? Or the bombing of buildings and the killing of people?”