Date: Friday, 07 February 2025
The inspection process of the ships detained in the territory of the state of Eritrea is still ongoing, "Caspian Marine Services B.V." told APA.
"Thus, as a result of the negotiations, the ships were brought to a port with a larger area and the ship's crew was provided with the opportunity to disembark and spend time in free walking areas. Unfortunately, although the communication problem has not been resolved, the representative of the law firm representing our company is keeping in touch with the situation of the ship's crew on a daily basis and is helping to meet their needs, especially the timely and full provision of food supplies. According to the latest information received from Eritrean government officials, the relevant documentation process to ensure the early release of the vessels is almost complete and the vessels and crew members will be released as soon as possible. As for the reason why the investigation is taking so long, the Eritrean authorities stated that the rules for conducting such processes, including the duration and other features, are regulated by the state's domestic legislation, and that extending the investigation to 3 months is a completely normal practice under Eritrean law. According to information received from Eritrean government authorities and the authorized representative of our company in that country, the health condition of 18 Azerbaijani citizens currently in the Eritrean port of Assab is normal, and there is no dissatisfaction with the conditions of detention.
Finally, we would like to emphasize once again that our company is constantly in contact with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan and other relevant state bodies regarding the resolution of the issue, and all involved parties are continuing to take the necessary actions in accordance with their fields of activity.
State bodies periodically provide public statements on the work done," - the statement says.
While the detained crew members were on board…
According to the report, that the purpose of the protest was to obtain information about the negotiation process for the release of the ship and crew detained in Eritrea.
The father of the arrested Saleh Poladov, Velad Poladov, said that they have not heard from his son for 3 months: "We want to get information from the company. It has been 3 months now. How will this end? The arrested crew members used to contact us once a week while they were on the ship. Now there is no news."
What is the Azerbaijani government doing to release the crew members?
Mahmud Rustamov's father, Amrah Rustamov, said that they had met with company officials, as well as with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, several times regarding the incident: "We have also been to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but there was no result. We ask our state to reunite our children with us. We stated at the Caspian Marine Services protest that they can save the ship whenever they want, this is the company's business. The last time the company said 2 weeks ago that they would take the documents and leave in 3 days. There's no one to say the exact date."
What are the families of the arrested crew members demanding?
Family members said that the 18-member crew has been away from their families for 3 months.
Later, the company's deputy director, Agshin Rahimov, received relatives of those detained as a result of the Eritrean government's decision. The meeting was closed to media representatives.
After the meeting, the meeting participants said that Agshin Rahimov, who received them, said that there were several reasons for the delay in the process, and it was additionally emphasized that diplomatic relations with Eritrea pose difficulties. Thus, visas are not issued in connection with this issue, and even if an application is made, it is rejected. The families of those detained were also informed by the company that work is underway to secure their release.
Why isn't Caspian Marine Services making a statement?
Caspian Marine Services B.V. has not made any statement on the matter.
Why did Eritrea detain Azerbaijani ships?
Recall that on November 7, 2024, the ships "CMS Pahlevan", "CMS Yigid" and "CMS-3", sailing under the state flag of the Republic of Azerbaijan and operated by the branch of "Caspian Marine Services B.V." in the Republic of Azerbaijan, made a forced entry into the territorial waters of the State of Eritrea as a result of worsening weather conditions during their trip from the Suez Canal to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Although prior contact was made with the port authorities of the State of Eritrea during the crossing, since it was not possible to provide information, after entering the 12-mile territorial waters of the state, the relevant authority of the State of Eritrea emphasized that the entry was unauthorized and detained the vessels in question.
