Pirates paid €2.5m to free ship

SOMALI pirates have released a Ukrainian ship carrying tanks following a ransom payment.

The MV Faina was captured in September with its 20-man crew and a cargo of 33 Soviet-era T-72 tanks plus other weapons. The seizure drew international attention, not only for its military cargo, but for a regional row over the destination of the tanks.

“The last group of pirates has got down now and MV Faina is released,” the negotiator, who asked not to be named, said yesterday.

The pirates were paid $3.2 million (€2.5m), he said.

Andrew Mwangura of the East African Seafarers Assistance Programme, a Kenyan-based piracy monitoring group, said foreign naval ships in the area were moving toward the MV Faina, which he said had yet to leave the Somali port.

“We hear the navies are moving closer probably to escort it. But it hasn’t changed position yet.”

Ukrainian president Viktor Yushchenko welcomed the end of the protracted process to free the vessel.

“The 17 Ukrainian sailors will soon be able to see their loved ones on Ukrainian soil,” a statement on his internet site said.

Kenya said it had bought the tanks for its army but foreign diplomats said the arms were bound for south Sudan — a potential embarrassment to Nairobi, which brokered a peace pact for the region.

South Sudan has consistently denied the tanks were for its army.