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Greenpeace protesters who blocked Russian oil found not guilty, 5 November 2022
The defendants forced the ship to U-turn after occupying a jetty at the Navigator Terminals in Grays, Essex.
District judge Christopher Williams found them not guilty after a two-day trial at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court...
"I take the view it's more than likely the Russian war could be described as terrorism," said the judge. "In my view, the unloading of the oil was the potential offence." He added it was "arguable that offences may have been committed under the Terrorism Act 2000" and the "activity which the defendants disrupted was the very thing they were protesting about".
Prosecutor Monali Ralerasker argued the case did not "require an analysis of what's morally right and what's morally wrong".
The protesters broke out into applause and there were cheers as the judge found each of them not guilty of obstructing or disrupting a person engaged in a lawful activity under the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994.
Speaking afterwards, the defendant and former lieutenant colonel, Michael Grant, said: "This verdict is not just a relief for us but a complete vindication of the ethical beliefs that led us to act"...
Part of the following timelines
Ukraine: Global outrage over Russian invasion leads to sanctions, demands for businesses to divest
The associations accuse TotalEnergies of indirectly contributing to the Russian war effort by continuing to exploit a deposit after military aggressions started in Ukraine.
After The Insider’s initial report regarding supplies to the Russian military was made public, Auchan executives promptly issued a response refuting any association with the supplies or assistance provided by their regional stores to volunteers collecting aid for the mobilized. However, recent evidence, comprising documents, photos, and videos, being released by The Insider, reveals that Auchan was fully aware of the destination of the goods and actively participated in concealing the supplies intended for the Defense Ministry as regular commercial sales to private entities.
The West had sought to largely ground the country’s carriers, but they continue to operate by skirting global rules and cannibalizing older planes for parts.
One year into Russia’s bloody invasion of Ukraine, as western companies flee the country, fearful of the reputational and legal risk of continuing to do business there, Raiffeisen finds itself stuck.
Tools, cigarettes and clothes sold by French retailer Auchan supply Russian soldiers on the Ukrainian front, sometimes with the complicity of its Russian subsidiary.
A US oil multinational funded by the Scottish Government exported oil and gas drilling equipment from Montrose to Russia three months after ministers called on businesses in Scotland to cease trading with the country.
European dependence on Russian oil and gas enabled the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It can be ended only by breaking the chains of global addiction to fossil fuels and ending the political and economic dominance of oil majors.
"A complaint against TotalEnergies by two associations for “war crimes complicity” for allegedly helping produce fuel for Russian warplanes that have bombed Ukraine has been shelved by prosecutors."
According to research by ZDF and Der Spiegel, the German BASF's subsidiary Wintershall Dea supplies gas condensate to the Russian state corporation Gazprom. Gazprom, in turn, is Russia's most important producer of aviation fuel and is said to have supplied aviation fuel to two military bases suspected of being responsible for airstrikes on civilian targets.
Ten Greenpeace activists who blocked a tanker carrying Russian diesel have been cleared of aggravated trespass by a judge who said the war in Ukraine "could be described as terrorism".
A joint venture of the German company Wintershall Dea delivered gas condensate to Kremlin-controlled Gazprom, which in turn provided aviation fuel to two military bases believed to be behind air strikes against civilian targets in Ukraine that have been internationally criticised as possible war crimes.
"Two NGOs have filed a complaint against French energy giant TotalEnergies for "complicity in war crimes" for allegedly helping fuel Russian planes that have bombed Ukraine, according to French media reports."
Swedish furniture giant Ikea posted a six percent rise in full-year sales on Thursday, in what it described as a "challenging" year due to inflation and scaling back in Russia.
At midnight on August 10, the European Union’s sanctions on Russian coal came into effect. After a four-month wind-down period, it became an offense for EU entities to “purchase, import, or transfer, directly or indirectly, coal” that originates in, or is exported from, Russia.
A Global Witness investigation released today reveals that a Siberian gas field joint-owned by French oil giant TotalEnergies has been providing oil to a refinery fuelling Russian warplanes throughout the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
After Siemens had previously decided to not take on new projects in Russia and Belarus due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the company has now announced its complete withdrawal from Russia and will cease its business activities entirely.
The European Commission is proposing phasing out Russian crude oil within six months and refined oil by the end of the year, with most recent plans giving Hungary, Slovakia and Czech Republic longer phase-out periods.
With each day of the invasion, the pressure grows on Western companies to shutter their operations in Russia. Businesses that continue to operate there will have to withdraw sooner or later, DW's Miodrag Soric writes.
Since the invasion of Ukraine, Prof. Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and his team have been tracking which companies have withdrawn from Russia, which are making partial moves, and which are staying put. Sonnenfeld and Steven Tian say that their goal is simple: “Every corporation with a presence in Russia must publicly commit to a total cessation of business there.”
As sanctions against Russia increase, many firms have pulled out and are making active contributions, but there are questions of whether this is a one-off or the start of a larger change.
The UN Global Compact Network UK calls on the business community to act now and help civilians caught up in the devasting humanitarian crisis in Ukraine. We understand that the private sector is contending with sanctions against Russia, supply chain cost inflation, and overall instability; however, at times like this it is more important than ever for businesses to conduct human rights and environmental due diligence, putting people and planet at the heart of their actions.
Top pharmaceutical companies in the U.S. and Europe said they’re halting recruitment for clinical trials in Russia, while continuing to send medicine and other health supplies to help those in need.
Many foreign companies operating in Ukraine have swiftly moved to support the country as it defends itself from the Russian invasion. Sebastian Shehadi speaks to those on the ground assisting in any way they can.
The invasion of Ukraine is causing a mass exodus of companies from Russia. Some companies have concluded that the risks, both reputational and financial, are too great to continue.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine by land, air and sea threatens to disrupt exports of commodities such as grains and oilseeds from both countries, while the prospect of toughened sanctions against Russia could disrupt energy and metals supplies.
Russia’s oil and gas industries have gotten a lot of attention in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, but some experts say Russia's mining interests could also complicate the U.S. response to the nation's invasion of its neighbor.
For years, Germany's policy on Russia has been to promote political change through trade. Now, German companies with investments in Russia and in Ukraine are faced with imperiled staff and uncertainty.
The West has moved to punish Russia with a raft of measures, including closing airspace to Russian aircraft and shutting out some Russian banks from the SWIFT global financial network.
European sports and entertainment businesses were among the first to announce such moves, including Premier League club Manchester United who withdrew the sponsorship rights of Russian airline Aeroflot.
While the International Bar Association condemned Russia’s invasion into Ukraine, several leading law firms (Baker McKenzie, CMS, Dentons and Kinstella) have closed their local branches citing staff safety and well-being as the highest priority.
The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC ) and the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) condemn Russia’s actions in Ukraine and call for peace
The company’s pay-out from the Sakhalin-II oil and gas fields would cover 1/10th of all the damage Russia has done to Ukraine’s energy infrastructure during the war.
A US oil multinational funded by the Scottish Government exported oil and gas drilling equipment from Montrose to Russia three months after ministers called on businesses in Scotland to cease trading with the country.
European dependence on Russian oil and gas enabled the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It can be ended only by breaking the chains of global addiction to fossil fuels and ending the political and economic dominance of oil majors.
"A complaint against TotalEnergies by two associations for “war crimes complicity” for allegedly helping produce fuel for Russian warplanes that have bombed Ukraine has been shelved by prosecutors."
According to research by ZDF and Der Spiegel, the German BASF's subsidiary Wintershall Dea supplies gas condensate to the Russian state corporation Gazprom. Gazprom, in turn, is Russia's most important producer of aviation fuel and is said to have supplied aviation fuel to two military bases suspected of being responsible for airstrikes on civilian targets.
A joint venture of the German company Wintershall Dea delivered gas condensate to Kremlin-controlled Gazprom, which in turn provided aviation fuel to two military bases believed to be behind air strikes against civilian targets in Ukraine that have been internationally criticised as possible war crimes.
Ten Greenpeace activists who blocked a tanker carrying Russian diesel have been cleared of aggravated trespass by a judge who said the war in Ukraine "could be described as terrorism".
"Two NGOs have filed a complaint against French energy giant TotalEnergies for "complicity in war crimes" for allegedly helping fuel Russian planes that have bombed Ukraine, according to French media reports."
State processors are collectively working on finalizing and securing new six-month supply contracts for Russian crude to India, eager to take more of the heavily-discounted stocks.
The European Commission is proposing phasing out Russian crude oil within six months and refined oil by the end of the year, with most recent plans giving Hungary, Slovakia and Czech Republic longer phase-out periods.
Duarte Cordeiro stated that the Government does not advocate any response to the energy crisis, “but one that safeguards the limits of the natural system."
Global Witness petition calling on EU, UK and US govts to sanction Russian oil, coal and gas & urgently accelerate energy transition; the organisation estimates that Western energy companies have paid almost $100bn to Russia since Crimea invasion in 2014
Lithuania says it has cut itself off entirely of gas imports from Russia, apparently becoming the first of the European Union's 27 nations using Russian gas to break its energy dependence upon Moscow
Coal demand began surging in 2021 as gas prices rose, an effect intensified by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, threatening the EU’s legally binding 2030 climate target.
The German government has been worried about being sued by the fossil fuel companies behind the Russian gas pipeline under the Energy Charter Treaty. This explains the German delay in halting Nord Stream 2 following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
