Greenpeace protest would not have harmed Prirazlomnaya oilrig - activist
MURMANSK. Sept 27 (Interfax) - The recent Greenpeace action in the Pechora Sea was unable to do any harm either to Gazprom's Prirazlomnaya offshore oil platform or environmental security in the Arctic, Greenpeace activist Dmitry Artamonov said at a press conference in Murmansk.
"Allegations that several ropes and a banner may pose a threat to the ice-resistant platform are absurd. Otherwise, Gazprom should seriously think about the safety of its platform," he said.
The actions of the environmentalists from the vessel Arctic Sunrise outside the oil rig were recorded on videotape, Artamonov said.
"One needs to understand what actually happened there: people in five motorboats approached the platform and wanted to attach a banner to it," he said.
Artamonov also noted that border guards who "fired warning shots into the water" may have posed a greater threat to Greenpeace deep-sea divers who Gazprom claims were near the platform.
Greenpeace Russia Arctic programs coordinator Yevgenia Belakova, for her part, told Interfax that as the Arctic Sunrise approached Prirazlomnaya, its crew informed people on the platform of the peaceful nature of their action and the absence of any weapons onboard the vessel over the radio.
