Documentary Review: On Thin Ice: Putin vs Greenpeace
The BBC documentary series "On Thin Ice: Putin vs Greenpeace" recounts the events surrounding the 2013 anti-oil protest by a group known as the Arctic 30, comprising two journalists and 28 Greenpeace activists. The series begins with a gripping double episode detailing their attempted protest against the state-controlled Russian oil company Gazprom.
Greenpeace's ship, the Arctic Sunrise, ventured to the Prirazlomnaya oil rig in the Pechora Sea to delay drilling operations and highlight environmental concerns. The activists’ plan included scaling the rig and deploying a survival pod to hang from its edge. Initially tailed by Russian coastguards, the situation escalated when armed men in balaclavas intercepted the activists during their climb.
Filmed by Greenpeace, the confrontation shows Russian special forces apprehending the protesters amid threats and water cannon attacks. Helicopter-borne forces later seized the Arctic Sunrise, leading to the activists' imprisonment. Future episodes are expected to explore their subsequent three-month detention and the international diplomatic fallout.
"On Thin Ice: Putin vs Greenpeace" airs on BBC Two and is available on BBC iPlayer.