The 1928 schooner Windborne leaves Auckland as it heads to Helena Bay to lead the Ukraine Peace Flotilla. Photo / Geoff Reid
The 1928 schooner Windborne leaves Auckland as it heads to Helena Bay to lead the Ukraine Peace Flotilla. Photo / Geoff Reid
Environmental group Greenpeace is throwing its weight behind a protest fleet heading to a Russian oligarch's Northland hideaway.
The Ukraine Peace Flotilla '22 is led by Whitianga-based veterans of the protest fleets that famously sailed to Moruroa Atoll starting in the 1970s in a bid to stop French nuclear testing.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which began on February 24 and has so far forced an estimated 2 million refugees to flee the country, has spurred the sailors to return to the water.
The first vessel, a schooner named Windborne, left Coromandel last Saturday.
The fleet will assemble at Whangaruru Harbour on Saturday before sailing to Russian steel magnate Alexander Abramov's $50m luxury lodge at Helena Bay, north of Whangārei, on Sunday.
Greenpeace intended to join the flotilla with the veteran protest vessel Vega, but the yacht is stuck in Auckland with mechanical problems.
Instead Greenpeace members are travelling on Windborne, which is skippered by seasoned anti-nuclear protester Avon Hansford.
Greenpeace Aotearoa programme director Niamh O'Flynn called on the government to freeze the assets of Abramov, New Zealand's richest Russian investor, to apply pressure on the Russian government.
''We applaud the Government's announcement of the Russia Sanctions Bill, but if they're serious about using sanctions to pressure Putin, then they must go for the big fish quickly ... Aotearoa has a long and proud history of standing up for peace. We pushed back against the might of the nuclear powers and declared ourselves a nuclear-free zone. Now is a time when we must stand up again.''
The flotilla is hoping Alexander Abramov, the billionaire owner of Helena Bay Lodge north of Whangārei, will pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war. Photo / Greg Bowker
Thomas Everth, another Moruroa protest veteran, is heading to Helena Bay on the 13m cutter Te Taranui.
He said it wasn't clear what ties Abramov had to Russian President Vladimir Putin but as one of Russia's richest men he wielded significant influence at home.
Even if they weren't Putin's friends, Russia's top oligarchs could stop the war by banding together, Everth said.
Up to 10 vessels were expected to take part in Sunday's peace flotilla.
That included yachts from Coromandel, Auckland and the Bay of Islands, and even a few kayaks.
The historic schooner Windborne, seen here leaving Whitianga on Saturday, is leading the flotilla. Photo / supplied
Everth said the fleet aimed to raise awareness of what was happening in Ukraine, give New Zealanders a chance to speak out, and send a message to Abramov and his fellow oligarchs about pressuring Putin to end the war.
He ''absolutely'' welcomed this week's announcement of fast-tracked legislation allowing New Zealand to impose sanctions on Russia and individuals linked to the war without having to wait for UN sanctions.
Everth was also pleased Greenpeace had joined the fleet because the organisation would bring its PR clout and boost coverage of the protest.
News on Thursday morning of the ''atrocious'' shelling of a maternity hospital in the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol had only strengthened the flotilla's resolve, he said.
The sailing vessels Windborne and Vega took part in protests against deep-sea oil drilling off New Zealand's west coast in 2013. Photo / supplied
Forbes magazine lists Abramov as Russia's 24th richest man worth about NZ$8.1b.
Abramov's superyacht Titan arrived in the Maldives, in the Indian Ocean, on Monday after leaving a port in Mediterranean Turkey. It is not known whether Abramov is on board.
Reuters reports at least four other superyachts owned by Russian billionaires are now in the Maldives, possibly to avoid sanctions imposed by other countries.
On Friday the British government effectively seized Chelsea Football Club, which is owned by Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich.
Abramovich had earlier announced he was putting the Premier League club, worth an estimated NZ$4.7b, up for sale.
Both Abramovich and Abramov have interests in the Russian steel giant Evraz. Abramov, who made his fortune from steel and mining, chairs Evraz Group.
He completed the $50 million lodge at Helena Bay in 2016 and has invested in apartment complexes around the country.
Some neighbours in Helena Bay are displaying blue-and-yellow Ukrainian flags but others say Abramov has brought jobs and investment to an area where work is scarce.
Security at the lodge has reportedly been beefed up in recent days.
