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"Antarctic Political Prisoner." What is happening in the case of Ukrainian biologist Leonid Pshenichnov from Crimea, who was detained by the FSB for speaking out against large-scale krill fis
Source: Grati
Author: Anastasia Moskvichova
Russian security forces detained Ukrainian marine biologist Leonid Pshenychnov in occupied Crimea and charged him with treason under Article 275 of the Russian Criminal Code. This was prompted by the scientist’s research on plankton near Antarctica and his advocacy for the creation of nature reserves there, where unregulated krill fishing (crustaceans resembling small shrimp) would be prohibited. Russia considers this a threat to its national security.
In contrast, other Ukrainian scientists argue that overfishing and the destruction of plankton could actually harm the entire ecosystem of the Southern Ocean, particularly the local mammals and birds: penguins, seals, and whales.
“Grati” reports on the details of the scientist’s persecution.
FSB Opposes the Protection of Crustaceans
The FSB detained scientist Leonid Pshenichnov in Kerch on September 9—on the eve of his trip to Australia to participate in a meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), which was to take place in Hobart.
Vasyl Myroshnychenko, Ukraine’s ambassador to Australia and New Zealand, told “Grati” about this. According to him, Pshenychnov, a Ukrainian citizen, was forcibly issued a passport in occupied Crimea, which is why Russia considers him a Russian citizen and accuses him of treason for providing scientific consulting services to Ukraine, which allegedly posed a threat to Russia’s national security. However, in reality, the issue centers specifically on Pshenychnov’s scientific and environmental conservation activities.
Leonid Pshenychnov. Photo from the National Antarctic Scientific Center’s page
Currently, according to the Ukrainian Antarctic Scientific Center, there are two marine protected areas in the Southern Ocean where human economic activity, particularly fishing, is restricted: on the shelf of the South Orkney Islands and in the Ross Sea. The latter was established in 2016; however, since then, no proposals to create new areas have been supported, as Russia and China opposed them.
In the “Order to Bring Charges” dated September 18 of this year, which “Hrati” reviewed, Leonid Pshenichnov is accused of, knowing of Russia’s intention to carry out “large-scale krill fishing in the Antarctic region using a continuous harvesting system instead of the traditional method previously used,” prepared analytical materials justifying the need to restrict krill harvesting using this method in certain areas near Antarctica.
According to information from this document, the Ukrainian delegation put forward a proposal to restrict krill fishing for discussion by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources in 2023, but no decision was made at that time because representatives of the Russian delegation, among others, opposed it.
However, as reported in 2024 by “Rosrybolovstvo”—which the Russian investigation cites—initiatives to establish nature conservation areas in the Southern Ocean, where commercial and economic human activity would be prohibited, despite Russia’s opposition, were still being considered and discussed by the commission.
Therefore, the FSB concluded that there was a threat to Russia’s “economic security” due to the likely restriction of its industrial fishing activities and the potential extraction of hydrocarbons (oil and gas) on the Southern Ocean shelf near Antarctica, should the proposals for krill conservation ultimately be adopted.
At the same time—and this is also currently being discussed in Australia—oil production near Antarctica is currently completely prohibited under international law. Specifically, Article 7 of the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty—to which Russia is a signatory—prohibits “any activity related to mineral resources, except for scientific research.”
The Ukrainian research station “Akademik Vernadsky” on Galindez Island near Antarctica. Photo from the National Antarctic Scientific Center’s page
On October 6, in Hobart, Australia, during the opening of the CCAMLR Working Group on Fish Stock Assessment, Ukrainian scientists issued a statement regarding the inability of one of Ukraine’s delegates to participate due to his unlawful arrest in occupied Crimea.
The persecution of Leonid Pshenychnov for his scientific work sparked an international outcry: in addition to the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, other CCAMLR delegates and representatives of specialized environmental organizations condemned the action, as did—in particular, in a comment to “Abc.net.au”—Australian diplomats.
According to Vasyl Miroshnychenko, just one week after the statement at the Commission’s meeting, information about Pshenychnov’s case was completely withheld from the public, and the indictment was rewritten.
“As we have learned, the text of the indictment dated September 18, 2025, has already undergone significant changes (tending toward a shorter version), but we do not have the text of the new version of the indictment,” the diplomat noted.
Currently, according to his information, Leonid Pshenichnov is being held in one of Simferopol’s pretrial detention centers, but it is unknown which one exactly—according to “Crimean Solidarity,” there are currently at least three in Simferopol: Pretrial Detention Center No. 1, Pretrial Detention Center No. 2, and Pretrial Detention Center No. 8; Russia opened the latter two after its large-scale invasion of Ukraine, and it is unclear when the trial in this case might begin.
“The ‘Russian World’ is capable of bringing evil even to the frozen continent”
Leonid Pshenichnov is a renowned Ukrainian scientist specializing in the biological resources of the Southern Ocean. From 1992 to 2007, he worked on Ukrainian fishing and research vessels, Australian trawlers, and the German research vessel Polarstern. He participated in a number of important Ukrainian research expeditions in Antarctic waters.
The scientist worked for many years at the Southern Research Institute of Marine Fisheries and Oceanography in Kerch (Crimea); in 2015, he moved to the Institute of Fisheries and Marine Ecology in Berdyansk, and later to the Institute of Fisheries, Marine Ecology, and Oceanography in Kyiv.
Leonid Pshenychnov with colleagues. Photo from the National Antarctic Scientific Center’s page
Ukrainian zoologist and marine mammal researcher Pavlo Goldin notes that Leonid Pshenychnov’s experience is unique, and his research is significant not only as highly specialized work.
“The fact is that many animal species live in Antarctica, and several of them are of commercial importance. And each has its own population dynamics: one year there’s more krill, the next year less, and these fluctuations can vary by several million times. And because the entire Antarctic ecosystem depends on this krill—including whales, penguins, seals, and humans—it’s important to know when krill populations will be a million times larger and when they’ll be smaller,” he explains.
Also, according to the scientist, it is important to understand why these fluctuations in krill population size occur, which waters they are associated with, where krill can be harvested, and where it should not be harvested. And it was precisely Leonid Pshenichnov’s expertise on this issue that formed the basis for his position on the creation of nature reserves in the Southern Ocean, where krill fishing should be restricted or even banned altogether.
“This is almost the first—at least to my knowledge— at least—in human history where a scientist is directly blamed for his scientific work on nature conservation and told that this conservation in Antarctica supposedly contradicts the interests of their state. In the sense that they want to do everything in Antarctica: fish, harvest krill, drill, and extract minerals—which is a direct violation of the Antarctic Treaty. “They want none of this to exist: neither an international system of nature conservation nor protected areas,” says Pavlo Goldin.
Penguins near the Ukrainian Antarctic station “Academician Vernadsky.” Photo from the National Antarctic Scientific Center’s page
According to the Ukrainian National Antarctic Scientific Center (NASC), in response to the scientist’s arrest, Pshenichnov continued to live in Crimea with a Ukrainian passport because he was unable to leave his family. At the same time, he continued his research and remained a member of the Ukrainian delegation to CCAMLR, which he joined back in 1996.
“Unfortunately, Antarctica has not remained free of politics precisely because Russia has brought its policy of ecocide and repression against dissent even there. The ‘Russian World’ is capable of bringing evil even to the icy continent, and even there, this evil must be met with a united international response,” the NASC quoted the center’s director, Yevhen Dykyi, as saying.
The center calls Pshenychnov an “Antarctic political prisoner” and points out that the scientist has already turned 70, and his detention behind bars could have a critical impact on his health.
Author: Anastasia Moskvichova
Russian security forces detained Ukrainian marine biologist Leonid Pshenychnov in occupied Crimea and charged him with treason under Article 275 of the Russian Criminal Code. This was prompted by the scientist’s research on plankton near Antarctica and his advocacy for the creation of nature reserves there, where unregulated krill fishing (crustaceans resembling small shrimp) would be prohibited. Russia considers this a threat to its national security.
In contrast, other Ukrainian scientists argue that overfishing and the destruction of plankton could actually harm the entire ecosystem of the Southern Ocean, particularly the local mammals and birds: penguins, seals, and whales.
“Grati” reports on the details of the scientist’s persecution.
FSB Opposes the Protection of Crustaceans
The FSB detained scientist Leonid Pshenichnov in Kerch on September 9—on the eve of his trip to Australia to participate in a meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), which was to take place in Hobart.
Vasyl Myroshnychenko, Ukraine’s ambassador to Australia and New Zealand, told “Grati” about this. According to him, Pshenychnov, a Ukrainian citizen, was forcibly issued a passport in occupied Crimea, which is why Russia considers him a Russian citizen and accuses him of treason for providing scientific consulting services to Ukraine, which allegedly posed a threat to Russia’s national security. However, in reality, the issue centers specifically on Pshenychnov’s scientific and environmental conservation activities.
Leonid Pshenychnov. Photo from the National Antarctic Scientific Center’s page
Currently, according to the Ukrainian Antarctic Scientific Center, there are two marine protected areas in the Southern Ocean where human economic activity, particularly fishing, is restricted: on the shelf of the South Orkney Islands and in the Ross Sea. The latter was established in 2016; however, since then, no proposals to create new areas have been supported, as Russia and China opposed them.
In the “Order to Bring Charges” dated September 18 of this year, which “Hrati” reviewed, Leonid Pshenichnov is accused of, knowing of Russia’s intention to carry out “large-scale krill fishing in the Antarctic region using a continuous harvesting system instead of the traditional method previously used,” prepared analytical materials justifying the need to restrict krill harvesting using this method in certain areas near Antarctica.
According to information from this document, the Ukrainian delegation put forward a proposal to restrict krill fishing for discussion by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources in 2023, but no decision was made at that time because representatives of the Russian delegation, among others, opposed it.
However, as reported in 2024 by “Rosrybolovstvo”—which the Russian investigation cites—initiatives to establish nature conservation areas in the Southern Ocean, where commercial and economic human activity would be prohibited, despite Russia’s opposition, were still being considered and discussed by the commission.
Therefore, the FSB concluded that there was a threat to Russia’s “economic security” due to the likely restriction of its industrial fishing activities and the potential extraction of hydrocarbons (oil and gas) on the Southern Ocean shelf near Antarctica, should the proposals for krill conservation ultimately be adopted.
At the same time—and this is also currently being discussed in Australia—oil production near Antarctica is currently completely prohibited under international law. Specifically, Article 7 of the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty—to which Russia is a signatory—prohibits “any activity related to mineral resources, except for scientific research.”
The Ukrainian research station “Akademik Vernadsky” on Galindez Island near Antarctica. Photo from the National Antarctic Scientific Center’s page
On October 6, in Hobart, Australia, during the opening of the CCAMLR Working Group on Fish Stock Assessment, Ukrainian scientists issued a statement regarding the inability of one of Ukraine’s delegates to participate due to his unlawful arrest in occupied Crimea.
The persecution of Leonid Pshenychnov for his scientific work sparked an international outcry: in addition to the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, other CCAMLR delegates and representatives of specialized environmental organizations condemned the action, as did—in particular, in a comment to “Abc.net.au”—Australian diplomats.
According to Vasyl Miroshnychenko, just one week after the statement at the Commission’s meeting, information about Pshenychnov’s case was completely withheld from the public, and the indictment was rewritten.
“As we have learned, the text of the indictment dated September 18, 2025, has already undergone significant changes (tending toward a shorter version), but we do not have the text of the new version of the indictment,” the diplomat noted.
Currently, according to his information, Leonid Pshenichnov is being held in one of Simferopol’s pretrial detention centers, but it is unknown which one exactly—according to “Crimean Solidarity,” there are currently at least three in Simferopol: Pretrial Detention Center No. 1, Pretrial Detention Center No. 2, and Pretrial Detention Center No. 8; Russia opened the latter two after its large-scale invasion of Ukraine, and it is unclear when the trial in this case might begin.
“The ‘Russian World’ is capable of bringing evil even to the frozen continent”
Leonid Pshenichnov is a renowned Ukrainian scientist specializing in the biological resources of the Southern Ocean. From 1992 to 2007, he worked on Ukrainian fishing and research vessels, Australian trawlers, and the German research vessel Polarstern. He participated in a number of important Ukrainian research expeditions in Antarctic waters.
The scientist worked for many years at the Southern Research Institute of Marine Fisheries and Oceanography in Kerch (Crimea); in 2015, he moved to the Institute of Fisheries and Marine Ecology in Berdyansk, and later to the Institute of Fisheries, Marine Ecology, and Oceanography in Kyiv.
Leonid Pshenychnov with colleagues. Photo from the National Antarctic Scientific Center’s page
Ukrainian zoologist and marine mammal researcher Pavlo Goldin notes that Leonid Pshenychnov’s experience is unique, and his research is significant not only as highly specialized work.
“The fact is that many animal species live in Antarctica, and several of them are of commercial importance. And each has its own population dynamics: one year there’s more krill, the next year less, and these fluctuations can vary by several million times. And because the entire Antarctic ecosystem depends on this krill—including whales, penguins, seals, and humans—it’s important to know when krill populations will be a million times larger and when they’ll be smaller,” he explains.
Also, according to the scientist, it is important to understand why these fluctuations in krill population size occur, which waters they are associated with, where krill can be harvested, and where it should not be harvested. And it was precisely Leonid Pshenichnov’s expertise on this issue that formed the basis for his position on the creation of nature reserves in the Southern Ocean, where krill fishing should be restricted or even banned altogether.
“This is almost the first—at least to my knowledge— at least—in human history where a scientist is directly blamed for his scientific work on nature conservation and told that this conservation in Antarctica supposedly contradicts the interests of their state. In the sense that they want to do everything in Antarctica: fish, harvest krill, drill, and extract minerals—which is a direct violation of the Antarctic Treaty. “They want none of this to exist: neither an international system of nature conservation nor protected areas,” says Pavlo Goldin.
Penguins near the Ukrainian Antarctic station “Academician Vernadsky.” Photo from the National Antarctic Scientific Center’s page
According to the Ukrainian National Antarctic Scientific Center (NASC), in response to the scientist’s arrest, Pshenichnov continued to live in Crimea with a Ukrainian passport because he was unable to leave his family. At the same time, he continued his research and remained a member of the Ukrainian delegation to CCAMLR, which he joined back in 1996.
“Unfortunately, Antarctica has not remained free of politics precisely because Russia has brought its policy of ecocide and repression against dissent even there. The ‘Russian World’ is capable of bringing evil even to the icy continent, and even there, this evil must be met with a united international response,” the NASC quoted the center’s director, Yevhen Dykyi, as saying.
The center calls Pshenychnov an “Antarctic political prisoner” and points out that the scientist has already turned 70, and his detention behind bars could have a critical impact on his health.
This is an automatic translation generated by DeepL.