Russia, Netherlands Compensation: Retribution for Seized Greenpeace Ship, Says International Court

A statement from the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), an internatinal tribunal, on Monday has ordered Russia to compensate the Netherlands in relation to Moscow's capture of Greenpeace's ship, the Arctic Sunrise, in 2013.

The Greenpeace ship was carrying 30 activists and journalists to protest the drilling operations of Gazprom, a Russian state oil giant, when it was boarded by Russian commandos, who detained the crew and seized the ship, according to Reuters.

The PCA has stated that the decision to impose Russia to compensate the Netherlands was taken unanimously on August 14. The results of the vote were published officially on late Monday, however.

A statement from the PCA said that it has "found that the Netherlands is entitled to compensation with interest for material damage to the Arctic Sunrise and those who were onboard."

The case of the captured activists, who were detained for two months before being released on bail, drew criticism from the international community. Though charges were ultimately dropped and the ship returned to Greenpeace, the incident nonetheless strained the relationship of the two countries further, reports Yahoo! News.

Despite the ruling however, a spokeswoman from the Russian Foreign Ministry has said that Moscow refuses to recognize the authority of the PCA, adding that the decision "in effect, encourages non-peaceful protesting activity in the sea."

Russia has recently been the center of the international focus for other reasons, after it banned access to Wikipedia, as covered in this HNGN article.

Tags

Russia, Moscow, Greenpeace, Gazprom, Russian, Activists, Journalists