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Russia, Netherlands settle Prirazlomnaya platform incident, says foreign ministry

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his Dutch counterpart Stef Blok also discussed bilateral relations and steps to improve them

MOSCOW, May 17. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his Dutch counterpart Stef Blok on Friday agreed on a final settlement of claims over the Prirazlomnaya oil platform incident, as follows from the Russian Foreign Ministry’s statement following a Lavrov-Blok meeting on the sidelines of the 129th ministerial session of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers in Helsinki.

"An agreement was concluded on the final settlement of claims following the September 2013 events at the Prirazlomnaya oil platform involving the Arctic Sunrise ship flying the Dutch flag," the Foreign Ministry said.

Lavrov and Blok also discussed bilateral relations and steps to improve them.

In September 2013, The Arctic Sunrise approached the oil platform Prirazlomnaya and a group of Greenpeace activists tried to climb on it. Border guards upset the attempt and tugged the ship to Murmansk. A group of 30 people, including four Russians, were arrested.

At the beginning of October 2013 the detainees were accused of piracy. The charges would later be converted to hooliganism. At the end of November 2013 the protesters were released on bail and then amnestied on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Russian Constitution. The ship was released on June 6, 2014 and left Murmansk for Amsterdam.

In August 2015, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague ruled Russia was obliged to pay a compensation to the Netherlands for the ship’s detention. The Russian Foreign Ministry replied that the case was outside the court’s jurisdiction.

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