A court in the German city of Hamburg is set to open a trial on Wednesday over the 2022 explosions that damaged the Nord Stream gas pipelines, marking the first formal court proceedings initiated by German judicial authorities against a suspect in the case.
A Ukrainian national will stand trial on suspicion of involvement in the planning and execution of the pipeline blasts.
The court has scheduled 16 hearing sessions between October 14 and December 17, with the trial expected to be extended into early 2027.
Based on preliminary investigations, the court said there are sufficient grounds to suspect that the Ukrainian defendant, identified as Serhii K., acted as a co-perpetrator in the destruction of the Nord Stream pipelines. He is suspected of attacking civilian infrastructure and committing war crimes, among other charges.
On September 26, 2022, explosions damaged the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines under the Baltic Sea near Denmark and Sweden, causing large gas leaks.
Three of the four pipeline strings were damaged in what investigators believe was an act of sabotage.
Trial over 2022 Nord Stream pipeline blasts to open in Germany
China's foreign trade in yuan-denominated terms expanded 18.8 percent year on year in the first three quarters of this year, official data showed on Wednesday.
Speaking at a press conference in Beijing, Wang Jun, deputy head of the General Administration of Customs (GAC), said China's trade in goods imports and exports totaled 39.94 trillion yuan (about 6 trillion U.S. dollars) from January to September.
"According to customs statistics, in the first three quarters of this year, China's trade in goods imports and exports totaled 39.94 trillion yuan, up 18.8 percent year on year. Among them, exports rose 16.4 percent to 23.2 trillion yuan over the period, while imports climbed 22.3 percent to 16.74 trillion yuan. On a monthly basis, growth remained in double digits for six consecutive months. In September alone, goods trade climbed 27.5 percent from a year earlier to 5.16 trillion yuan, exceeding 5 trillion yuan for the first time," said Wang.
"In the first three quarters, China's equipment manufacturing sector played a prominent leading role, contributing nearly 90 percent of the growth in exports. Intermediary goods accounted for more than half of total export value, effectively serving as an anchor for global industrial and supply chains. Exports moved toward greater intelligence and green development, with integrated circuit exports growing 99.1 percent, while green products such as electric vehicles, lithium batteries, and wind turbine generator sets and their parts grew 72.3 percent, 36.4 percent, and 22.4 percent, respectively," he said.
On the import side, growth has exceeded 20 percent for seven consecutive months since March, a run that culminated in September with monthly imports topping 2 trillion yuan for the first time. Imports grew 5.9 percentage points faster than exports in the first nine months, outpacing exports in trade with more than 110 countries and regions, promoting more balanced trade development, according to the customs data.
"In the first three quarters, the growth rate of foreign trade was the fastest for the same period in nearly five years, with both quarterly and monthly growth rates generally showing an accelerating trend. The driving forces and vitality of China's foreign trade development have continued to accumulate and strengthen, demonstrating notable resilience, and there is a solid foundation and support for continued import and export growth in the fourth quarter," Wang said.
China's foreign trade expands 18.8 pct in first three quarters
