On 18 September 2013, a team of Greenpeace activists attempted to board thePrirazlomnaya oil platform, situated within the Russianexclusive economic zone, intending to disrupt drilling activities and raiseawareness of Arctic environmental issues. This action resulted in the subsequentarrest of 30 individuals associated with the protest, as well as that of theArctic Sunrise, a Greenpeace support vessel sailing underthe Dutch flag. The plight of the so-called ‘Arctic 30’ dominatedglobal headlines until their release under a general amnesty by Russia inDecember 2013. Meanwhile, the arrest of the vessel prompted the commencement ofarbitral proceedings by the Netherlands against Russia, a process that had yetto be concluded at the time of writing. In November 2013, however, theInternational Tribunal for the Law of the Sea upheld a Dutch petition forprovisional measures, including the release of the vessel and its crew subjectto the payment of a bond. In so doing, the Tribunal faced the issue ofnon-participation by a respondent state for the first time, while alsodeveloping arguably a ‘back-door’ position on promptrelease. In the meantime, aspects of the legality of environmental activism atsea remain somewhat uncertain which, given that a considerable number of protestvessels are registered to the Netherlands, may engage the litigative attentionof the Dutch authorities in future incidents.