Berlin court halts projection of war images onto Russian embassy

Admin I Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2024

 

BERLIN – A Berlin court has prohibited the projection of war images onto the Russian embassy building, a protest move planned by a Ukrainian association to mark the second anniversary of Moscow’s full-scale invasion.

The projection of images and videos onto parts of the embassy would compromise the dignity of the diplomatic mission, the administrative court said on Tuesday, thereby confirming a ban by the police.

According to the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961, the receiving state has a special duty to protect the premises of a diplomatic mission in order to prevent its peace or dignity from being compromised.

An appeal against the decision can be lodged with the Berlin-Brandenburg Higher Administrative Court.

The Ukrainian association Vitsche wanted to project photos and videos of the war onto the embassy for an hour during its demonstration on the second anniversary of the Russian attack on Ukraine on Saturday.

This was forbidden by the police. Several demonstrations and rallies against Russia and President Vladimir Putin and in solidarity with the people of Ukraine have been announced for Saturday.

Some organizers have planned events around the Russian embassy on Unter den Linden in Berlin-Mitte.