Construction company fined 1,8 million euros for helping to build the Crimean bridge

The Dutch construction machinery supplier Dieseko has to pay the treasury almost 1,8 million euros for illegally helping the construction of the Crimean Bridge. This bridge connects Russia to the illegally annexed Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea. By supplying piling machines for construction, the Sliedrecht-based company violated international sanctions against Russia that had been in place since 2014.

The Public Prosecution Service (OM) has issued a fine to Dieseko without prior litigation. This is equal to a fine of 180,000 euros. OM sees the other 1,6 million euros as illegal profit for Dieseko, which it received by helping to build the Crimean Bridge.

In 2014, the European Union introduced sanctions against Russia that, in many cases, prohibited companies from supplying goods or technical services to individuals or companies in Crimea. The OM blames Dieseko for the fact that they supplied piling machines between 2015 and 2016 for the construction of the Crimean Bridge because the company ignored international sanctions doing so.

According to the OM, Dieseko was able to handle the case outside of court due to their cooperation with the investigation. The construction equipment supplier also promised to monitor whether orders comply with international legislation more stringently. A code of conduct for staff was also introduced.

Dieseko expressed its regret for the violation: "At Dieseko, we want to follow the rules and our sharply adjusted moral compass while offering our machine's technological support to companies around the world. This did not happen during this project. We regret that, and we definitely disapprove of it. We offer our sincerest apologies for this," CEO Raymond Wagemaker responded on the company's website.

In the last few years, more Dutch companies have been punished for helping to build the Crimean bridge, which is an important symbol for Russia of the peninsula's annexation. Prosecutors were alerted to these violations due to reports from De Gelderlander.

Thus far, six companies and ten people have paid fines for illegally helping to build the bridge without a court ruling. In addition, the OM wants to bring one company and a few people to court.