DutchNews, July 18, 2017
Russia has been ordered to pay some €5.4m
in compensation for the 2013 Arctic Sunrise incident, in which Russia bordered
the Greenpeace ship and arrested its crew of 30.
The Permanent Court of
Arbitration in The Hague said Russia had broken its international obligations
by boarding the ship in September 2013 during protests about drilling for oil
in the Arctic Sea. The Arctic Sunrise was sailing under the Dutch flag.
The compensation package includes €1.7m for damage to the ship, compensation for the crew and
€625,000 in legal costs. Several members of the crew spent months in a Russia jail charged with piracy.
Caretaker foreign affairs minister Bert Koeders said
in a statement that he welcomed the court’s decision and that he expected
Russia would pay up.
‘The ruling makes it clear that ships in international
waters cannot simply be boarded and the crew arrested,’ he said. ‘The Arctic
Sunrise was making use of the right to demonstrate. This ruling will contribute
to the development of the international rule of law, in particular maritime law
and the right to freedom of speech.’
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