Europe

Europe

Russian ship reappears near Turkish port

14 January 2012 18:17 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Authorities say a Russian ship suspected of delivering weapons to Syria has anchored off Turkey’s coast, APA reports quoting news.yahoo.com website.

A Foreign Ministry official said Turkish coast guard and customs officials would board the Chariot on Saturday before allowing it to dock at the port of Iskenderun. The official spoke on condition of anonymity in line with government rules.

The ship had made an unscheduled stop in Cyprus, technically violating an EU embargo on arms shipments to Syria. Cypriot authorities allowed it to leave Wednesday after the ship’s owners said it would not head for Syria.

Turkey, citing navy intelligence, said the ship nevertheless made its way to the Syrian port of Tartus after leaving Cyprus.

U.S. officials said Friday they had expressed concerns to both Russia and Cyprus.