Greenpeace Arctic detainees return home from Russia
Anthony Perrett and his partner Zahara Ally land in Paris Five British Greenpeace activists have arrived in the UK from Russia after being granted an amnesty from charges over an Arctic oil drilling protest.
Anthony Perrett, Alexandra Harris and Phil Ball travelled home with crew member Iain Rogers and videographer Kieron Bryan after 100 days in Russia.
There were emotional family reunions at London's St Pancras rail station.
The five were among 30 people held on hooliganism charges and were released under a new Russian amnesty law.
They flew from St Petersburg to Paris, then travelled on to St Pancras on Eurostar.
Another activist, Canadian Alexandre Paul, was also expected to arrive in Montreal later on Friday.
Seven of the so-called Arctic 30 group arrested in September during action at an offshore oil rig owned by the Russian company Gazprom have now left Russia.
The departures began on Thursday when Dima Litvinov, a Swedish-American, left Saint Petersburg on a train to Helsinki.
Grim surroundings"It's been a very long 100 days. I'm quite eager to get back to Wales and sleep in my own bed and get back to work," Mr Perrett told Radio 4's Today programme before boarding a flight to Paris.
He said he had been treated well in Russia despite grim surroundings.
"We weren't treated like prisoners of war. It had very much the razor wire and the barbed wire and the reinforcing bar which made up cages. It had the aesthetic of a concentration camp."
Mr Perrett, 32, of Newport, south Wales, added that he would be happy to return to Russia to carry out further protests, although Greenpeace currently had no plans for further action there," he said.
"I hope we've got the conversation started in Russia about the drilling in the Arctic and raised it with the Russian voters.
"It was definitely worth it. Unless humanity starts acting as one people on this planet we're going to irrevocably change the climate and make it unliveable on this planet for everybody."
Mr Bryan said he too was relieved to be heading home.
"It is a shame that we missed Christmas, but I know that I'm going to be in the UK to start 2014, which is such a wonderful feeling," he said.
Greenpeace said all but the four Russian members of the Arctic 30 are expected to leave the country over the coming days.
Legal concerns"All 30 have since had the case against them dropped after the Russian parliament approved an amnesty decree last week," the environmental campaign group said.
Kieron Bryan: "I know that I am going to be in the UK to start 2014 which is just such a wonderful feeling"
"The 30 benefited from the amnesty without admitting any guilt."
The release and return of the detainees was welcomed by the UK's Minister for Europe, David Lidington.
He said: "I am delighted that the British nationals have been allowed to return to their families and friends. This is a welcome step from the Russian government."
However he said there were still concerns over Russia's legal system.
"The British government continues to call on the Russian authorities to strengthen the rule of law, tackle corruption and promote independence of the judiciary."
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