Former Siemens executives to be tried in Germany for exports to occupied Crimea

A German court in Hamburg has opened a case against two former Siemens executives accused of violating sanctions by exporting the company’s gas turbines to occupied Crimea.

Four Germans and one Swiss are accused of illegally selling four of the company’s gas turbines to Crimea. They sold the turbines to a Russian state-owned company knowing that they would end up in occupied Crimea, which is a violation of the embargo.

The turbines, worth 111 million euros, were exported through the port of Hamburg to St. Petersburg between November 2015 and January 2016. According to the agreement, the turbines were to be installed in southern Russia, but Siemens’ Russian customer installed them at two new power plants in Simferopol and Sevastopol.

Now, according to Reuters, the Hamburg regional court has decided to continue the trial of two of them, while the prosecution of the remaining three has been discontinued because the investigation did not find sufficient grounds to continue it.

The court statement said that the prosecutor’s office has appealed the decision to drop the case against the three people. The German judicial authorities did not name the defendants in the case.

A Siemens representative said the company could not comment on active legal proceedings, but added that the defendants no longer work for the company.

USM previously reported that Siemens was accused of supplying gas turbines to occupied Crimea.