The captain of an arms-laden Ukrainian cargo ship hijacked by Somali pirates appealed in an interview for the ship`s owner to engage in direct talks with the pirates and end the crew`s 15-week ordeal, according to AFP via easybourse.com.
Speaking to AFP on a satellite phone from the MV Faina over the weekend, Vladimir Nikolsky complained that no direct contact had been made by the ship`s Israeli owner with the pirates` leader since the vessel was seized Sept. 25.
"I think Vadim Alperin, the real ship owner, doesn`t know the real situation... The owner`s representative I think has been hiding information from him," Nikolsky said, in his first interview since the hijacking.
The MV Faina is a Ukrainian ship operated under a Belize flag and is carrying 33 Soviet-type battle tanks as well as ammunition.
Captain Vladimir Kolobkov died in unclear circumstances on Sept. 27 and was replaced by second mate Nikolsky.
The ship`s cargo sparked a controversy, with Kenya alleging it was the intended recipient of the weapons but several other sources insisting the shipment was in fact destined for the forces of South Sudan.
Nikolsky said that attempts to negotiate the ship`s release, involving a flurry middlemen, had failed due to a lack of determination to free the crew.
"The leader of the pirates Mohammed Abdi is ready to establish contact with the ship`s owner and he now refuses to make any contact with any other party," he said.
Nikolsky said the crew - two Russians, 17 Ukrainians and one Latvian - were decently treated by the group of pirates but stressed nevertheless that the months of captivity were taking their toll.
"They are staying in a small room without moving, without any physical exercise... Half of the crew is ill and the other half of the crew is going to go mad," he said.
