German TV channel N-TV reported that the Hamburg prosecutor’s office has indicted five employees of the German company Siemens for exporting gas turbines to Russia-occupied Crimea.
This fact became known in 2017, but the prosecutors came to conclusion only now, after more than six years of investigations. According to the preliminary information four Germans and one Swiss and one French citizen violated the ban on the supply of goods to the occupied Crimea, they knew that four gas turbines worth EUR 111 million, which were shipped from Hamburg to St Petersburg in late 2015 and early 2016, were not intended for southern Russia, but for two new power plants in Crimea to supply electricity to the Russian-annexed peninsula.
Siemens initially denied the illegal delivery, but later stated that it had all the evidence that the gas turbines had been illegally transported – but without the German company’s knowledge. The problem here is that Siemens continued to trade with Russia even after the scandal.
Now, when the investigation finally reached the point of indication, there is a hope for justice. And that’s a good example for other companies to investigate and stop any connections and trade with the aggressor country. Sanctions must be enforced.
