Kenya: Pirated Ukrainian ship’s arms are ours
Posted by African Press International on October 12, 2008
Kenyan foreign minister Moses Wetang’ula has denied that the Ukrainian ship that Somali pirates hijacked two weeks ago 200 miles off the coast of Somalia was destined for southern Sudan and not Kenya as claimed by certain circles.
The Kenyan government on Wednesday reiterated its claims of the ownership of the vessel’s contents of military tanks, artillery, grenade launchers and ammunition.
On the other hand, speculation has been rife on both local and international media in the country claiming that the consignment was indeed heading to southern Sudan and that the Kenyan government bought the consignment on behalf of the southern Sudanese government, a region the United Nations has slapped with an arms embargo.
A Unites States navy spokesman, Nathan Christensen, was quoted in the media last week confirming that the ship with 21 crew members onboard was heading to southern Sudan, an emerging scenario that is bound to put Kenya at an embarrassing diplomatic position if the claims are indeed true.
Addressing a news conference at his offices in Nairobi, Wetang’ula said that the government has collaborating evidence indicating that the ship was indeed heading for Kenya, adding that the reports indicating otherwise were fictitious and baseless.
However, on Tuesday the media obtained a ship manifest on the purchase of the ship listing Kenya as the consignee with GOSS as the contract reference, a normal abbreviation for Government of South Sudan.
The minister denied the claims saying that GOSS is in fact an acronym of General Ordinance Supplies and Security.
The minister at the same time ruled out the possibility of giving the US$20 million ransom demanded by the buccaneers. Giving any ransom would be tantamount to encouraging piracy in one of the most dangerous waters in the world, he said.
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API/Source.apa
