Sat, Feb 11 2012

Bulgaria agrees to Somali pirates' ransom demands

Thu, May 07 2009 10:51 CET

byNick Iliev

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Bulgaria agrees to Somali pirates' ransom demands

The sum demanded by Somali pirates for the safe return of the Bulgarian sailors has been negotiated and apparently approved by the Bulgarian Government. The 16 sailors, abducted on board the British vessel Malaspina Castle, now look likely to return home as the ransom arbitrations near finalisation, said Deputy Foreign Minister Milen Keremedjiev. The ship was attacked on April 6 2009.

The ransom still has not been paid so there is no concrete information from the Foreign Ministry as to when the sailors are returning home. According to his statement, the common practice in such circumstances is apparently for the money to be released from a charter flight. Then the ship is liberated.

"I don't want to raise the hopes of relatives at this point, but negotiations have entered a very advanced stage. There are several other details which are due to be ironed out, but a resolution is due very soon," he said as quoted by Dnevnik daily.

Mediation is conducted between the shipowner and the pirates, as well as the head of B Navy Bulgaria, Tsvetan Gude, who represents the Italian charter firm. Negotiations are conducted through the captain of the ship.

The 32 000-ton Malaspina Castle, a British-owned cargo ship sailing under Panama's flag, was attacked on April 6 in the Gulf of Aden. She has a crew of 24, from Russia, Ukraine, Bulgaria and the Philippines.

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