Petition: No to « Shtandart », the ambassador ship of Putin, in Brittany

President of Brittany Region, Prefect of Brittany Region, we solemnly urge you to enforce the fifth round of sanctions taken, on April 8, 2022. It was unanimously decided by the European states following the Russian massacres in Butcha. It prohibits any Russian vessel from entering the ports of the Union.

Sanctions: letters with IMO about wether russian vessel Shtandart is falling or not within the scope of the relevant international conventions

Under the pressure of a pro-russian lobby, the French governmental agency in charge of controlling the respect of sanctions pretends russian vessel « Shtandart » can bypass EU regulation because it would not be a ship falling within the scope of the relevant international conventions. The question was asked to the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

From your home, in just a few clicks, take part in the “No Shtandart” campaign

The French media space is literally saturated and corrupted by the propaganda of the Russian ship Shtandart as well as by a fallacious rewriting of European sanctions. Although the tools and resources have been developed to counter this disinformation carried by powerful intermediaries, the truth will only come to light through the determined and collective action of #NoShtandartInEurope activists. This article determines the modus operandi of their endeavour.

European regulation concerning restrictive measures against Russian ships, full text

Surprisingly, since the beginning of the Russian ship Shtandart case in the ports of our country, no French media, unlike the Spanish press, considered quoting the authentic European text setting out the exclusion measures affecting ships registered in Russia.

Shtandart: letter to France 3 TV

Regarding the Russian ship Shtandart, France 3 TV article confirms the resolute commitment of La Rochelle municipality in the violation of European sanctions and in the propagation of a misleading presentation of the European text in order to deceive public opinion.

Russian frigate « Shtandart » – Letter to the French president

Letter addressed to Mr. Emmanuel Macron, President of the French Republic, asking him for the effective application of the fifth package of sanctions and for, consequently, the expulsion of the Russian ship « Shtandart » from French ports. It is, moreover, proposed to share, with the State agencies, the findings evidenced by #NoShtandartInEurope regarding the ramifications of the pro-Russian influence network exercising its hold on the city of La Rochelle.

« Shtandart », the Russian ship that breaks European sanctions with the support of the authorities of La Rochelle, France

On Sunday, December 11, 2022, following an invitation of the « Ukraine Atlantique » Association, around a hundred Ukrainians and French supporters of Ukraine came from Rennes, Saint-Malo, Caen, Paris, Nantes, Saintes, Bordeaux and various other cities to back their counterparts in La Rochelle. On several occasions, they encouraged the mayor of La Rochelle, Jean-François Fountaine, and the prefect of Charente-Maritime, Nicolas Basselier, to take note of the fifth part of the sanctions voted unanimously, by the States members of the European Union, on April 8, 2022. According to the activists, this text prohibits Russian ships from entering EU ports.

Rally against Russian frigate « Shtandart » in Bilbao, 31/07/2022

A rally of Ukrainians, accompanied by local activists, was held on Sunday morning July 31, 2022, against the presence of the Russian frigate « Shtandart » in the port of Bilbao. Among other things, the demonstrators accuse Shtandart of:

violating the 5th package of European sanctions,
falsely claiming to be an opponent to Putin’s regime,
promoting the Russian flag, symbol of the worst crimes committed on European soil since 1945,
being an element of the Russian propaganda and « soft power »,
creating a diversion from the war.

Shtandart’s 2021 mission under the auspices of the President of Russia

According to a well shared and used narrative, Shandart frigate is said to be an anti-Putin ship and her captain, is granted the status of a visceral Putin opponents for years, at least since 2009. Shtandart also claims to not receive any public funding from Russian state. It did not prevent Shtandart vessel to perform an official Russian assignment under the auspice of the Russian president as late as 2021 as evidenced by a Greek publication.