British dockers refuse to unload tanker full of Russian oil

A German tanker full of Russian oil is sitting in Birkenhead Docks after dockers refused to unload it

A German-flagged tanker is currently sitting in the docks at Birkenhead full of Russian oil, because dock workers have refused to unload it. The vessel is moored near the Stanlow Oil Refinery, but as a result of the Ukraine conflict, the workers have made their stand not to touch the ‘Sea Cod’.

Sharon Graham, the Unite general-secretary told operators Essar its members “will under no circumstances unload any Russian oil regardless of the nationality of the vessel which delivers it”.

Britain has a ban on Russian ships entering any UK docks, but the ban does not apply in this case, as the vessel is German, and only its cargo is Russian.

Dockers in Kent yesterday also refused to unload a shipment of liquefied natural gas, leaving the Russian vessel, Boris Vilkitsky, stuck out in the English Channel with a full cargo. According to the ship-tracking website MarineTraffic, the tanker is currently near Nantes off the French coast.

Meanwhile, Dmytro Kuleba, the Ukrainian foreign minister hit out on Twitter today, Saturday, March 5, at the Dutch energy giant Shell. The company announced yesterday, Friday 4, that they had purchased a consignment of Russian crude oil, confirming it to the PA news agency.

Kuleba criticised this action, asking Shell if the oil smelled of Ukrainian blood. “I call on all conscious people around the globe to demand multinational companies to cut all business ties with Russia”, he added.

Last Monday 28, Shell had announced its plans to cut ties with Gazprom, and that it would sell all shares in their Russian partner’s company, with whom it has several joint ventures. A Shell spokesman at the time had called the invasion of Ukraine a threat to European security, and ‘senseless’, as reported by dailymail.co.uk.

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