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Naftogaz is trying to recover the multibillion-dollar
arbitration award stemming from Russia’s 2014 illegal annexation
of Crimea and its seizure of Ukrainian energy assets, including
gas fields and pipelines.
In 2023, an arbitration tribunal in The Hague ordered Russia to
pay the $4.22 billion to the Ukrainian state-owned energy
company for unlawfully seizing its assets in Crimea.
After Russia's refusal to pay the award, Naftogaz has been
petitioning national courts seeking court orders to seize
Russian commercial assets.
“This is another important step towards restoring justice for
Russia’s unlawful seizure of Naftogaz assets in Crimea. Russia
cannot evade responsibility simply by refusing to comply with an
international arbitral award. We will continue to pursue Russian
assets around the world,” said Naftogaz CEO Sergii Fedorenko.
When asked on Thursday about Norway’s action, Russian President
Vladimir Putin said the seizure of civilian vessels and strikes
on merchant shipping were “acts of state terrorism.”
He also condemned recent warnings by Ukrainian President
Volodymyr Zelenskyy to foreign airlines that flying in Russia
would no longer be safe because of Ukrainian long-range drone
attacks.
Speaking at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia,
Putin linked the vessel seizure and Zelenskyy’s warning, saying
such incidents “complicated” the prospects for future peace
talks. He added that Ukraine’s allies were “complicit in
international terrorism” by remaining silent on the issues.
Norway’s seizure of the Russian vessel, the Professor Molchanov,
comes after a Nord-Troms district court order issued August 31,
Svalbard Governor Lars Fause said in a statement.
Following the seizure, the vessel is not allowed to leave its
current location in Barentsburg on Svalbard, the governor said.
The Russian vessel is used for commercial expedition cruises,
including to Svalbard.
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