Russia’s parliament has passed an amnesty bill that includes crew members of a Greenpeace ship and jailed members of the Pussy Riot punk band.
The State Duma voted 446-0 in favour of the bill, which mainly concerns first-time offenders, juveniles and women with small children.
The move has been largely viewed as the Kremlin’s attempt to soothe criticism of Russia’s human rights records ahead of the Winter Olympics in Sochi next year.
The amnesty was extended to suspects of hooliganism, which means that prosecutors are now free to drop charges against the 30 people aboard the Greenpeace ship who were held after an oil rig protest in Russia’s Arctic in September.
The result means legal proceedings against the 28 activists and two freelance journalists, including six Britons, are now almost certain to come to an end.
The 26 non-Russians would then be free to return home as soon as they are given exit visas by the authorities.
It comes after a high-profile global campaign, in 46 countries and 150 cities, to free the 30, who were arrested and jailed in September before being freed on bail last month.
Greenpeace said it was not yet clear when the group will be allowed home, or what will happen to its vessel the Arctic Sunrise, which has remained impounded in Murmansk since the arrests.
Ana Paula Maciel from Brazil, one of the activists, said: “I’m relieved, but I’m not celebrating. I spent two months in jail for a crime I didn’t commit and faced criminal charges that were nothing less than absurd. But now at last it seems like this saga could soon be over and it may not be long before we’re back with our families.
“Right now, my thoughts are with our Russian colleagues. If they accept this amnesty, they will have criminal records in the country where they live, and all for something they didn’t do. All because we stood up for Arctic protection.”