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Australia says discovery of WW2 shipwreck ends 'tragic' maritime chapter

22 April 2023 16:55 (UTC +04:00)

Australia's Defence Minister Richard Marles said on Saturday that the wreck of a Japanese merchant ship, sunk in World War Two with 864 Australian soldiers on board, had been found in the South China Sea, ending a tragic chapter of the country's history, APA reports citing Reuters.

Marles said the SS Montevideo Maru, an unmarked prisoner of war transport vessel missing since being sunk off the Philippines' coast in July 1942, had been discovered northwest of Luzon island.

The ship was torpedoed en route from what is now Papua New Guinea to China's Hainan by a U.S. submarine, unaware of the POWs onboard. It is considered Australia's worst maritime disaster.

The long-awaited find comes ahead of April 25 commemorations for Anzac Day, a major day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand for their troops killed in all military conflicts.

"This brings to an end one of the most tragic chapters in Australia's maritime history," Marles said in a video message.