Original message of 16/08/2024 11:20

Captain

In accordance with this prefectoral document (attached) and after territorial authorities’s answer, you are not allowed to enter in a harbour in Finistère area.

Regards

De : Officier de permanence Etat-Major

BCRM de Brest – CC 46- 29240 BREST Cédex 9

Tel: 02.98.22.05.36-831.72.20.536

De : V Martus

Envoyé : vendredi 16 août 2024 12:04

Objet : Re: technical stop

Dear Sirs,

16/08/2024

Thanks for your e-mail of 16/08/2024, subject technical stop

That is well understood. We are now getting the anchor up and getting under way, heading north.

Still my request for technical stopover in some ports like Roscoff or around, stays.

We do need to fill water tanks,

and that is an official demand for shelter.

The human life will be at risk if no water supply received by TS Shtandart in next 72 hours.

I have to put our lawyer in CC of this message.

Very best regards,

Capt Vladimir Martus

TS Shtandart

Captain,

Concern your request for a stop in Roscoff it will be the same situation.

You would be allowed anchor only.

Regards

Officier de permanence Etat-Major

BCRM de Brest – CC 46- 29240 BREST Cédex 9

Tel: 02.98.22.05.36-831.72.20.536

Dear captain,

please note the new rules from Préfet maritime de l’Atlantique regarding your vessel :

1/ Anchoring is authorized – except for emergencies provided for in

international conventions – in territorial waters and inland waters (outside the administrative limits of ports, ports being the responsibility of departmental prefects) under the following conditions:

– That anchorage is requested with 24 hours’ notice to the nearest signal station.

– That the reasons for the anchoring request are specified.

– That any connection to land is announced to the nearest signal station.

– That any change of personnel on board is communicated to the nearest signal station.

– That two anchorages are separated by at least 3 days (the anchoring request must include the date of the last anchorage and its position).

2/ Anchoring prohibited in the area covered by the order of the maritime prefect relating to the strait and the roadstead of Brest, including in the fore strait (limit drawn by a segment connecting the Pointe du Toulinguet and the Pointe de Saint Mathieu (anchoring at Camaret prohibited).

Please acknowledge this message.

Best regards.

Etel MRCC

Duty officier

2. An appeal to High court of France had been filed. Thank you all who helped to collect funding for the legal services, it was vitally important. Next actions are to file an appeal in European court of Justice. And then, there will be time to take to court our little lonely opponent, who want to be seen as “a collective”. We think it is enough lies he has spread around, time to show to people who he really is.

3. The SHTANDART has made a technical stopover in La Rochelle, and now the ship is sailing, according to preliminary plan, towards Granville. We’ve had a restrictive decision from Prefet of La Manche, let’s see if we could convert from negative to positive.

4. There are 17 crew on board. Winds are very light, so the ship is progressing slowly. In two days we would be in need for re-supply, looking for a place for it (Granville or around)

5. The Petition has more then 6100 votes. Please keep posting the link, let’s get more good people to know about it. Link in the first comment.

6. We hope that the support to SHTANDART will continue. With no festival, and challenges to get trainees on board, the donations will help to rescue Shtandart until the Courts will make their decisions and justice prevail.

Today, maritime authorities came on board to discuss Shtandart’s request for shelter. They spoke with the Captain, and he explained our situation and problems. We hope for permission to stay anchored until August 5th, when we can change the crew. According to our sailing plan, we will continue our journey on August 5th.

Among the sanctions imposed by the European Union following the invasion of Ukraine is the prohibition of Russian-flagged ships touching community ports. It is true that the case of the Shtandart, a replica of a frigate built in the 18th century, during the time of Peter the Great, is out of the ordinary.

But its educational nature – it usually offers guided tours wherever it docks – has not been an obstacle for the Galician Association for Help with Ukraine (AGA-Ucraína) to denounce its presence in Galician waters. A statement sent by the entity prevented the ship from arriving in Vigo this week . It was also unable to stop in A Coruña . But it did manage to avoid the veto to enter the sea of ​​Arousa, where it has been anchored since Friday in front of A Illa .

In order to control the situation, two patrol boats from the Civil Guard went to the Arousa estuary hours ago to monitor any movement of the museum ship and to place themselves at the orders of the Maritime Authority of Vilagarcía .

In the early hours of the morning, a Maritime Rescue helicopter that was carrying out a routine flight deviated slightly from its route to fly over the Shtandart and to make the crew aware of the need to communicate with land.

At this moment there are eleven people on board , including two teenagers , and the replacement will not arrive until August 4 .

“As we had no food or water supplies , we had to drop anchor and we needed spare parts” to repair the technical problem, adds the sailor, who claims that his boat is not subject to personal sanctions and has no ties to the Russian government . “The owner is a citizen of the European Union and its management is handled by Martus TV GmbH, a company registered in the EU.”

The last time he was able to reach port was on July 7, in Les Sables d’Olonne (France) . Twenty days have passed since then.

Read the full article on the lavozdegalicia.es (in Spanish)

The historic training ship Shtandart, a replica of the first frigate of the Russian Baltic fleet, has gotten caught up in the complicated web of sanctions imposed on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. Currently sailing under the Cook Islands flag, the Shtandart won’t be able to take part in the Iacobus Maris Experience happening in Vigo this week due to restrictions on ships flying the Russian flag, even after its flag change.

Impact of sanctions on the Shtandart

The sanctions against vessels with a Russian flag, implemented on April 16, 2022, by the European Union in response to Russian aggression in Ukraine, have severely affected the operations of the Shtandart. Although the ship has switched to the Cook Islands flag, the European Council emphasized in June 2024 that historical replicas like the Shtandart remain subject to these port sanctions. This situation has limited the ship’s access to European ports, complicating its supply logistics and affecting the training of young crew members from various nationalities, including Europeans, who are on board.

Asier, a young Spanish crew member, describes the difficulties: “This situation leads us to have problems accessing supplies. We have a small dinghy that we use to get to shore while the ship stays anchored. The biggest issue is that the dinghy has limited capacity, which means we have to make a lot of trips.” This testimony illustrates the logistical challenges they face to keep the ship operating in optimal conditions.

…

An uncertain future

The future of the Shtandart remains uncertain. The frigate and its crew are currently looking for an anchorage that allows them to get closer to shore to restock supplies and continue their journey. The situation illustrates how international politics and conflicts can impact cultural and educational initiatives, leaving young crew members (including three minors) in a precarious position as they navigate a sea of uncertainties.

Ironically, the Shtandart frigate, which aims to promote education and cultural exchange among youth from different countries, now finds itself stranded in European waters, immersed in a turbulent conflict that goes beyond the waves of the sea, reflecting the complexities and consequences of sanctions in an increasingly interconnected world.

Read the full article on the vigoe.es (in Spanish)

The Shtandart appreciates your encouragement.

We see immense backing not only from the maritime community but also from ordinary people.

Here, we are publishing some of the letters and comments we have received.

Messages and letters to us and to the authorities:

Dear Mr. Sullivan,
Sail training vessel Shtandart has been build in Russia and sails all over Europe since, I thought, 2000. Over the years they went through tremendeous difficulties with the Russian gouvernment and het Master is living in excile, years before the Russian invasion of Ukraine was on hands.
Shtandart was already in the surviving modus and should not be compared with any oligarch.
I think the exclusion of Shtandart is a counterproductive measure and a threat to the fragile European maritime heritage.
Please do whatever is in your power or influence to improve Shtandarts position in this.

Best regards,

Harry Muter
Master and operator of the Dutch sail training vessel Morgenster.

La CGT des Marins du Grand Ouest demande dans un communiqué aux Secrétaire d’État de la Mer et au Secrétaire Général de la Mer de réviser ces décisions

« SHTANDART » définitivement éloigné du littoral Finistérien et vraisemblablement du littoral Français, certains pourraient croire, voire victoire diplomatique. La CGT des Marins du Grand Ouest perçoit ce bannissement comme un échec pour la Paix, Comme une forme de lâcheté et d’un non-respect pour ceux qui naviguent sur le navire.

Aucun escale ne sera possible, y compris en cas de besoin d’assistance technique, qui sont celles et ceux qui osent et prennent de telles décisions.

Ce navire et ces Marins jeunes Marins charpentiers pour bon nombre d’entre eux n’ont rien à voir avec la politique politicienne. « Cette forme de discrimination est inacceptable ».

Pour la CGT des Marins du Grand Ouest toutes les fêtes Maritimes doivent être ouvertes à tous les Marins, quel que soit leur Nationalité et le Pays !

Pour le Syndicat CGT des Marins du Grand Ouest 

Jean-Paul HELLEQUIN Secrétaire Adjoint et Porte-Parole

Phoenix crew and her captain would like to show their support to Shtandardt crew and her captain in this very sad moment.
Maritime cultural heritage actors , do not deserved to be instrumentalized by any kind of politicians in this terrible war.
Our ships, where ever they Come from, and what ever their pavilions, are vectors of peace and friendship, and will always remain.

Dear friend, big hugs from Pandora. We are following all the steps of your hard sailing.

Dear Mr. Sullivan,

I am writing you this mail concerning the sailing vessel Shtandart.

We, the Nautisch Evenementen Bureau , are specialists in organizing major maritime events in the Netherlands and the UK and have been working in close corporation with our Belgium and French colleagues.  Since 2005 we have been working with the vessel Shtandart at majors events like Sail Amsterdam 2005, 2010, and 2015, Flushing 400 year Michiel de Ruyter, Tall Ship Festival Greenwich, the  Liberty Regatta Rouen – Scheveningen  and a few minor events. The vessel is a major attraction for the public and captain Vladimir Martus and his crew have been a very loyal and trustworthy partner over the years!!

The Shtandart is one of the best copies of old traditional  sailing vessels. She is true replica of the first Russian Frigate that was build around 1703 by Tsar Peter the Great in Zaandam, Netherlands. She is true heritage of the European sailing fleet!

Although she is sailing under the Russian flag, the captain/owner and the crew are very much part of the European sailing community and it would be a waist that this ship cannot find a place nor license/permit to sail in European waters.

I strongly call upon you to seek ways, even if they are an exception to the “rules”,  use your creativity and courage to arrange for a permission for the Sailing Vessel Shtandart to sail in our European waters.

Yours sincerely,

Paulus Mooyman,

Nautisch Evenemeneten Bureau, Sail Royal Greenwich Ltd,

Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Our site shtandart.eu

Pétition Help preserve the piece of world’s cultural heritage, frigate Shtandart