Greenpeace Arctic Sunrise ship case

After Greenpeace activists attempted to scale the Prirazlomnaya drilling platform on 18 September 2013, as part of a protest against Arctic oil production, Russian authorities seized the Greenpeace ship the Arctic Sunrise in international waters in the Russian Exclusive Economic Zone on 19 September 2013, arrested the crew at gunpoint, towed the ship to Murmansk, and detained the crew of 28 activists and two freelance journalists. The Investigative Committee of Russia opened a criminal investigation, charging the activists initially with piracy and later with hooliganism. Since the Arctic Sunrise was flying the Dutch flag, the Netherlands filed a case at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS case 22) which argued (and obtained ruling) the release of the crew and ship until both parties can resolve the conflict. Russia ignored the ITLOS ruling, but eventually released the crew as part of a general amnesty adopted by the State Duma after two months of detention. The Arctic Sunrise itself was released from Russian detainment in June 2014.

On 11 August 2013, the Greenpeace ship Arctic Sunrise left the Norwegian port of Kirkenes to begin a month-long expedition in the Arctic to protest against oil exploration in Arctic waters. The Arctic Sunrise sailed into the Barents Sea and was then refused permission three times by the Russian authorities to enter the Northern Sea Route although the refusal is in violation of international law including the right to freedom of navigation. On 23 August, Greenpeace ignored Russia's ban to protest state oil company Rosneft’s operations in the Arctic and entered the international waters of the Kara Sea. On 26 August, the Arctic Sunrise left the Northern Sea Route, after the Russian coastguard boarded the boat and threatened to use force if they would not leave the international waters of the Kara sea.

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