Sparks fly over TNT on boat

2003-06-24 18:40

Athens - Greece and Sudan engaged in heated exchanges on Tuesday over a Sudan-bound boat loaded with explosives which Greece has seized amid global terror alerts, despite Khartoum's insistence the cargo was merely for civilian use.

Greek authorities continued probing the Baltic Sky, seized in the eastern Mediterranean Sunday and allegedly loaded with 680 tons of high explosive including TNT and 8 000 detonators.

Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustafa Ismail said in Khartoum the cargo had been ordered by a registered Sudanese company from a Tunisian one, and that all relevant documents had been approved by his ministry.

He said the shipment was in fact ammonium nitrate, a raw material that can be used in the manufacture of explosives.

But Greek government spokesperson Christos Protopapas told journalists in Athens: "Greece does not understand the reasons for this protest."

The ship's crew - five Ukrainians and two Azerbaijanis - have been charged with possessing and transporting explosives to third parties for illegal activities.

State arsenal

Greek Merchant Marine Minister George Anomeritis said the sheer size of the load - which police said equalled the amount of TNT in the Greek state arsenal - together with log book inconsistencies and the captain's statements had raised suspicions.

Greek special agents had seized the the Baltic Sky, chartered from the Comoros Islands, inside Greek waters, Protopapas said. Its log had shown it sailed around the Mediterranean during May and June.

"It entered Greek waters carrying a dangerous cargo in contravention of the law of the sea," the government spokesperson said.

According to the merchant marine ministry, the crew had failed to notify Greek authorities 24 hours ahead of entering Greek waters as they should have done in conformity with the rules of the sea concerning dangerous cargo.

"It's this that really interests us," said Protopapas.

Protopapas declined to speculate on suspicions surrounding the cargo but noted that the vessel, which sailed on April 27, "would normally take three days to reach Sudan and not wander about the Mediterranean for a month and a half."

The seizure came amid a months-long heightened state of security in Greece, which holds the EU's rotating presidency until Italy takes over in July, and which is due to host the 2004 Olympic Games in its capital Athens.

Sudan is on a United States list of of countries supporting terrorism.

Documents approved

In Khartoum, Sudanese Foreign Minister Ismail slammed Greece for seizing the vessel, saying its ammonium nitrate load had been ordered by a Sudanese company from Tunisia and that all documents had been approved by his ministry.

He said he had ordered the Greek ambassador in Khartoum to be summoned to express Sudan's dipleasure at Greece's haste in impounding the ship on Sunday before verifying the facts.

The Baltic Star was reported to have made a landfall at Istanbul on May 22 and returned through the Dardanelles Straits again on June 2.

Merchant Marine Minister Anomeritis told a radio station:

"We are investigating who is behind the designated recipient and even if it turns out to be an ordinary company, this is such a huge load what would they do with it?"

Anomeritis said the boat's Ukrainian captain, Anatoly Baltak, said that he had replaced the previous captain in Istanbul.

"(Baltak) told investigators that while at sea he was told to deliver the cargo somewhere in the Ionian sea," Anomeritis said, adding that the claim was unrealistic as it would be impossible to transfer the cargo at sea.

- AFX