China Calls on Russia to Explain Cargo Ship Sinking
February 20th, 2009Via: Reuters:
China called on Russia on Thursday to explain how a Chinese cargo ship sank in Russian waters after reports it was fired on by the Russian military.
Seven Chinese sailors were missing after the “New Star” sank on Saturday in stormy seas off Vladivostok and after a Russian warship shot at least 500 rounds into it, the official China Daily newspaper said, quoting a Chinese-language paper which in turned quoted a Russian newspaper.
The “New Star” was held at the Russian port of Nakhodka earlier this month, suspected of involvement in smuggling, before it left without permission last week, the China Daily said.
“China has already made representations to the Russian side,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu told a news conference.
“We hope they continue with the search and rescue operations for the missing sailors and clarify the reason (for the incident) as soon as possible.”
China says three Chinese crew members were rescued and seven were missing.
In video footage of the incident broadcast on Russian television, the rattle of gunfire could be heard, with authorities there claiming the ship was given adequate warning.
“The ‘New Star’ captain was called by radio, border guard boats sent light signals, a special flag demanding to stop was raised and a warning shot was fired,” a prosecutor in Nakhodka, Alexander Selentsov, told Russia’s Interfax news agency.
Interfax also quoted a border guard captain as saying “the foreign vessel disregarded authorities’ demands and was fleeing to the Chinese economic zone at a full speed.”
Relations between Beijing and Moscow have warmed up considerably under Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, a proponent of a strong centralised state who has visited China several times.
In addition to their communist heritage, the two countries share a long, though sparsely populated border.
Rumors are they stopped a false flag op.
Russian Coast Guard and Naval forces were ‘forced’ to sink the Chinese registered cargo ship New Star bound for US Port of Seattle after it refused orders to stop and be boarded over fears it was carrying a ‘missing’ nuclear warhead from a Russian Topol-M intercontinental ballistics missile.
New Star is owned by the J Rui Lucky Shipping Co Ltd. which is a private limited company registered in Hong Kong and has long been known by Russian FSB Analysts to be an International shipping carrier of US Military and CIA cargo to support their ‘Global War on Terror’ under contract with the American giant services company KBR. (Halliburton parent company)
Why Russia would be so kind to the near bankrupt assh*le of the world, USA, is an interesting question.