I used to like Greenpeace until I realized they are just another agenda-pu$hing, controlled-opposition outfit.
"Greenpeace activists face possible piracy charges in Russia" by Steven Lee Myers | New York Times, September 25, 2013
SALEKHARD, Russia — Russia announced Tuesday that it had opened a piracy investigation against the crew of a Greenpeace ship after its activists scaled an offshore oil platform in the Arctic last week.
That is trespassing the last time I checked.
The step signaled that the authorities intended to act decisively to thwart more protests against Russia’s ambitious plans to expand energy exploration in the region.
The Greenpeace ship, the Arctic Sunrise, was seized by Russian border guards in international waters in the Pechora Sea last Thursday.
Why did it take a week to report?
That came a day after several members of the crew tried to board the Prirazlomnaya platform, which is operated by the Russian state energy giant Gazprom.
The ship has since been towed to port in Murmansk.
Its crew of 30, held incommunicado since the seizure, includes citizens of 18 countries, among them one American, raising the prospect of a diplomatic confrontation given the gravity of the piracy charges, which carry a sentence of up to 15 years in prison.
Can you beat that? We kill Somalis while absolving Israelis and we are going to pitch a bitch on this?
President Vladimir Putin has long complained of foreign interference in Russia’s internal affairs, but the seizure of the ship and the threat of piracy charges reflected an escalation of the government’s response to it, as well as the sensitivity of the country’s Arctic strategy.
Yeah, yeah, Putin's a bad guy. How come he didn't win a Peace Prize for his work in Syria?
Greenpeace reported that representatives of several embassies had arrived in Murmansk to meet with their respective citizens aboard the ship, which remained anchored in Kola Bay on Tuesday evening.
Really hopped to it, didn't they?
--more--"
"Putin defends seizure of Greenpeace vessel" by Steven Lee Myers and Andrew Roth | New York Times, September 26, 2013
SALEKHARD, Russia — President Vladimir V. Putin on Wednesday defended the seizure of a Greenpeace International ship after protests at an oil platform in the Arctic last week but raised questions about whether the activities of the ship’s 30 crew members warranted the piracy charges that Russian authorities said they would pursue.
“I don’t know the details of what happened there,” Putin said, speaking at an global conference on the Arctic here, “obviously they are not pirates. However, formally, they tried to seize our platform.”
Putin’s remarks came as the crew of the ship, the Arctic Sunrise, faced a second day of questioning by investigators in the northern port of Murmansk, where the ship was towed Tuesday morning after being seized by armed border troops dropped by helicopter.
The crew includes citizens of 18 countries, including an American, the ship’s captain.
Hmmm!
--more--"
"Greenpeace activists may face charges in Russia" by Andrew Roth | New York Times, September 27, 2013
MOSCOW — A Russian court ordered Thursday that 10 Greenpeace activists, including a US ship captain and a photographer who was accompanying the group, be held in custody for two months while the authorities investigate whether a demonstration at an offshore oil rig in the Arctic was an act of piracy.
The court in the port city of Murmansk worked into the evening, conducting individual hearings for the crew of Greenpeace activists — 30 in all — who were detained at the oil rig last week. They arrived in Murmansk Tuesday along with their ship, the Arctic Sunrise, which was towed to port by the Russian coast guard.
The detentions ordered by the court signaled that Russian prosecutors intended to go ahead with criminal cases against the activists.
Two members of the Greenpeace group attempted to board the Prirazlomnaya oil platform in the Pechora Sea on Sept. 18 to protest oil and gas drilling in the Arctic. Russian border guards responded by helicopter and seized their ship.
How would the U.S. have reacted to such a thing, and why didn't Greenpeace board a BP platform in the Gulf instead?
The 30 Greenpeace activists include people from 18 countries, including Britain, the Netherlands, and the United States. The US captain, Peter Willcox, was formerly master of the Rainbow Warrior, another Greenpeace ship, that exploded and sank during a protest against French nuclear testing in the Pacific in 1985.
--more--"
"Russia charges Greenpeace crew with piracy" by Andrew E. Kramer | New York Times, October 03, 2013
MOSCOW — Defying complaints from international human rights and environmental organizations, as well as the apparent wishes of President Vladimir V. Putin, Russian prosecutors brought piracy charges on Wednesday against 13 Greenpeace activists and a journalist who covered their protest.
The activists and the journalist were among 30 people aboard a Greenpeace International ship, the Arctic Sunrise, that was seized by helicopter-borne Russian border guards in the Arctic Ocean, off Novaya Zemlya, after members of the crew attempted to board a Russian offshore oil platform using inflatable boats. The activists said their actions were meant to call attention to the environmental hazards of drilling in icy northern waters.
The lodging of such serious charges in the Greenpeace case illustrates how far apart the Russian government remains from Western governments and nongovernmental organizations on such issues as freedom of speech and civil disobedience. Russian courts ignored a similar international outcry last year when they sentenced members of the musical group Pussy Riot to two years in prison for protesting in a church.
I'm unhappy every time they bring up that controlled provocation.
The piracy charges carry a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. It was not clear how many of the 28 members of the crew and the two journalists who were aboard the Arctic Sunrise would ultimately be charged; all of them have been detained for investigation.
The court in Murmansk handling the matter adjourned Wednesday with the cases of the ship’s US captain, Peter Willcox, and a number of others still pending. Lawyers for Greenpeace said the hearing could continue with more charges lodged on Thursday.
--more--"
"Netherlands seeks release of Greenpeace activists" by Toby Sterling | Associated Press, October 05, 2013
AMSTERDAM — The Dutch foreign minister said Friday he will file suit to recover the Greenpeace ship Arctic Sunrise, which was seized by the Russian government last month after activists for the environmental group protested at an oil platform in the Arctic Sea.
Frans Timmermans said he would also try to obtain the release of the ship’s 30 occupants, who have been charged with piracy by Russia, via diplomatic channels.
‘‘I feel responsible for the ship and its crew because it’s a ship that sails under the Dutch flag,’’ he told reporters in The Hague, Netherlands.
Timmermans said he would file an arbitration suit at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, based in Hamburg, because it wasn’t clear to him whether the ship’s seizure was legal. Greenpeace International, which is based in Amsterdam, denies any wrongdoing and describes the charges as absurd.
The Russian Coast Guard seized the ship and crew after a Sept. 18 protest at the platform, which is owned by the Russian state-controlled oil company Gazprom. The activists are being held in the northern Russian city of Murmansk.
‘‘I want to consult with my Russian colleagues . . . to get these people freed as soon as possible,’’ Timmermans said. ‘‘I don’t understand why this could be thought to have anything to do with piracy; I don’t see how you could think of any legal grounds for that.’’
He added he was open to hear the Russian point of view. Russian investigators filed the piracy charges, which can result in a 15-year prison term upon conviction, this week.
‘‘Our ship was illegally detained in international waters following a peaceful protest against Arctic oil drilling and we hope that other states, especially the countries whose nationals are among the detained, will support the Netherlands in this commendable initiative,’’ said Greenpeace lawyer Jasper Teulings.
Trespassing is peaceful?
In addition to Russia, the activists hail from 17 other countries: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Britain, Finland, France, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Sweden, Turkey, Ukraine, and the United States.
--more--"
Related: Greenpeace: Russia actions among worst 'assaults'
I think Israel's raid on the Gaza flotilla a few years ago was the worst.
"Diplomat’s arrest raises Russian-Dutch tensions" by Toby Sterling and Laura Mills | Associated Press, October 09, 2013
AMSTERDAM — Russian President Vladimir Putin demanded Tuesday the Netherlands apologize for arresting a Russian diplomat, further straining relations between the countries after Moscow decided to put some Greenpeace activists on trial. The tensions come during a year meant to celebrate the nations’ historic ties.
The diplomat, Dmitry Borodin, was arrested by Dutch police in The Hague late Saturday, and he has accused the police of even pulling his 1-year-old daughter’s hair as they took him and both his children to the station. Borodin, whose title is minister-counselor, gave his version of events on his Twitter account. He said the arrest came even though he identified himself and said he had diplomatic immunity.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said Borodin had been arrested over an ‘‘absolutely contrived’’ allegation of child abuse and the Dutch ambassador to Russia had been summoned to the ministry in Moscow to receive an ‘‘official protest’’ over the case.
Looks like the Dutch stepped in doo-doo.
The Netherlands’ Foreign Ministry said an ‘‘incident occurred with a Russian diplomat that led to an arrest by the Dutch police’’ and that it is under review.
Speaking from the APEC summit in Bali, Indonesia, Putin described the arrest as a ‘‘rude violation’’ of treaties on diplomatic relations. The Dutch ministerial statement, while not exactly conciliatory, said, ‘‘If it emerges from the investigation that actions were taken in conflict with the Vienna Treaty on Diplomatic Relations, the Netherlands will apologize to Russia.’’
The timing of the disputed arrest is sensitive.
On Sept. 18, the Russian coast guard seized the Dutch-flagged ship Arctic Sunrise after Greenpeace activists used it to stage a demonstration at an offshore oil platform owned by Gazprom. Last week, the Russians charged all 30 on board the ship with piracy.
It was reported above that they boarded it! That's more than a demonstration.
Dutch Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans said Friday that he would seek to recover the ship at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, based in Hamburg, Germany, because it wasn’t clear whether the ship’s seizure was legal. He said he would seek the release of the 30 detainees via diplomatic channels.
Greenpeace, meanwhile, staged demonstrations around the world over the weekend calling for the release of the ‘‘Arctic 30,’’ who are being held in Murmansk. A court on Tuesday denied bail to two of the activists and a freelance photographer who was with them.
According to Borodin’s Twitter account, men he took to be Dutch police entered his home Saturday night after he had refused them entry and he identified himself and told them he had diplomatic immunity. The Russian diplomat said they handcuffed him anyway and knocked him in the head. He and his two young children were then taken to a police station and released in the early hours of the following morning.
A report by Dutch state broadcaster NOS said that police traced a car that was involved in an accident earlier in the evening to Borodin’s home, and neighbors told police who came to investigate they were worried for the safety of the children inside.
How do you say bullshit in Russian?
Russia’s Foreign Ministry dismissed an apparently similar explanation brought forward by Dutch diplomats in a formal communique.
‘‘The attempt of the Dutch side to somehow justify the brutal act of the police does not stand up to the most elementary criticism,’’ the Russian ministry said. ‘‘The facts speak for themselves: During the night, a highly placed Russian diplomat had his apartment broken into by the police, who beat him, put him in handcuffs, and took him to the police station.’’
Borodin tweeted Tuesday that he and his children were fine but that he would not speak further about the matter.
The Netherlands and Russia chose 2013 as a year to celebrate historical ties. The new Dutch king, Willem-Alexander, is due to visit Russia in November.
And who would want to ruin the party?
--more--"
"Dutch apologize to Russia over diplomat’s arrest" by MIKE CORDER | Associated Press, October 10, 2013
THE HAGUE, Netherlands — The Netherlands apologized to Russia on Wednesday for the arrest and detention of a Russian diplomat — but the move appears unlikely to be enough to ease growing tensions between the two nations.
The swift apology by Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans aimed to smooth over a spat that has further soured relations already tested by Russia’s seizure last month of a Dutch-flagged Greenpeace ship protesting oil drilling in the Arctic. Russia has charged all 30 people on board with piracy, which carries a maximum 15-year sentence.
Diplomat Dmitry Borodin was arrested Saturday by police in The Hague over what Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich called an ‘‘absolutely contrived’’ allegation of child abuse.
His arrest breached the Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations, Timmermans said in a statement Wednesday. ‘‘The Netherlands offers the Russian Federation its apologies.’’
Still, the minister said he understood the action of police who arrested Borodin — a statement unlikely to appease Russian demands for action against the officers. The two nations remain in talks about the situation.
A non-apology apology.
Police have declined to comment. Dutch state broadcaster NOS reported police had traced a car involved in an accident to Borodin’s home, and neighbors told police they were worried for the safety of the children inside.
--more--"
"Putin vows to rebuild base in Arctic" by Vladimir Isachenkov | Associated Press, October 04, 2013
MOSCOW — President Vladimir Putin pledged Thursday that Russia will expand its presence in the Arctic, adding that work is underway to restore a major Soviet-era military base there.
Speaking at a meeting with activists of the main Kremlin party, United Russia, Putin said the Arctic region is essential for Russia’s economic and security interests. He said the Russian military has been restoring a base on the New Siberian Islands that was shut down after the Soviet collapse. The facility is key for protecting shipping routes that link Europe with the Pacific region across the Arctic Ocean, he said. Last month, a Russian navy squadron visited the archipelago.
‘‘The Arctic is an unalienable part of the Russian Federation that has been under our sovereignty for a few centuries,’’ Putin said. ‘‘And it will be so for the time to come.’’
Russia, the United States, Canada, Denmark, and Norway have been trying to assert jurisdiction over parts of the Arctic, which is believed to hold up to a quarter of Earth’s undiscovered oil and gas.
That's what is under all the ice.
--more--"
Just keeping the peace.
