Nine sailors from Greece, Russia, and Ukraine were arrested in June last year
- they worked at the TEMETERON tanker, under the jurisdiction of Belize;
- a Russian ship was detained in the port of Tripoli;
- crew members were charged on suspicion of fuel smuggling.
Political games
Libyan authorities discharged four Ukrainian citizens. This was announced by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia. The release was furthered by the deputy leader of the presidential council Ahmed Maetig and the political and economic delegation that accompanied him visit to Moscow. These events are regarded as nonrandom. Other sailors are still in jail in anticipation. The case is further investigated. Both the Russian Foreign Ministry and the Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Office continue to take steps to ensure the release of seamen remaining imprisoned.
Representative of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry commented that this task is very difficult to resolve because of the problems associated with serious security and political instability in Libya.
Due to the tense situation, Ukrainian consular service department urged its citizens to refrain from visiting Libya.
