The case of the sailing ship Shtandart: defending maritime heritage against misinterpretation and harassment

The website shtandart.eu has just published an article entitled “The Case of the Sailing Ship Shtandart: Defending Maritime Heritage Against Misinterpretation and Harassment.” This text devotes many pages to portraying the Russian frigate Shtandart as an innocent cultural project, while turning its attacks personally against me, Bernard Grua, spokesperson of the collective No Shtandart in Europe.

Let’s be clear: this article is 100% misleading. It mixes selective information, denial of sanctions, and unfounded accusations of “defamation” and “harassment.” But beyond the grand words, it brings nothing new and ignores the most basic facts established by European institutions and national courts.

Rather than answering every false claim, I prefer to make this piece public. Readers will then be able to see for themselves how far the promoters of the Shtandart go in order to escape the reality of sanctions and to discredit those who simply recall the law.

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Original article from Vladimir Martus

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Conclusion, by Bernard Grua

In the end, this article on shtandart.eu says more about the communication strategy of the Shtandart’s promoters than about reality.

By attacking me personally, it tries to distract from the essential: European sanctions apply to this vessel, and multiple states have already enforced them.

This so-called “open letter” is yet another example of Vladimir Martus’s strategy of victimisation inversion: pretending to be persecuted while systematically ignoring facts and court decisions. It is also consistent with his use of SLAPP procedures and judicial harassment against me, designed to silence criticism and intimidate citizens who simply recall the law.

As spokesperson of No Shtandart in Europe, I simply recall documented facts:

• Article 3ea of Regulation (EU) nº 833/2014, which provides the legal basis for the ban on Russian vessels, including replicas,
• the European Council clarification of June 24, 2024, confirming that replicas of historical ships are covered by sanctions,
• bans in most French ports, and in all ports of Ireland, the United Kingdom, Norway, Denmark, Spain, and Portugal,
• the additional decision by Spain and Portugal to prohibit the Shtandart from entering their territorial waters,
• unfavorable rulings by the Rennes Administrative Court and the Conseil d’État,
• and finally, the Court of Justice of the European Union decision of August 22, 2025, which confirmed beyond doubt that the Shtandart falls under EU sanctions.

No article, however lengthy or indignant, can erase these official decisions.
The public deserves clarity, not propaganda.

Bernard Grua
Spokesperson, No Shtandart in Europe

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Attachments

Portugal

Judicial harassment

Russian foreign ministry

Ireland

Ille-et-Vilaine

Spain

Russian propaganda outlets

French military naval base

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