01.03.2010
Turkish Undersecretariat for Maritime Affairs (UMA) prohibits Turkish-flagged vessels to join convoys escorted by Russian warships in Gulf of Aden, informs official website of the authority.
UMA announced in Dec 2009 that Turkish vessels may be escorted by Northern Fleet's large ASW ship
Admiral Chabanenko under monitoring of Russia's Federal Agency of Maritime and River Transportation.
However, the first Turkish ship in convoy informed Turkish frigate
Gokova that every escorted vessel was obliged to accommodate 3-5 Russian marines from
Admiral Chabanenko. Those servicemen stayed on board until the convoy passed dangerous zone.
According to UMA, any Turkish-flagged vessel is a part of Turkish soil and only Turkish Parliament has the right to invite foreign military servicemen to Turkish territory.
The authority reminded that any captain joined Russian convoy and accepted Russian armed security teams on board may face prosecution. UMA recommends Turkish shipmasters to prefer convoys organized by other countries; for instance, China, India, South Korea, and Japan.
Currently, Baltic Fleet's frigate
Neustrashimy keeps anti-piracy watch in Gulf of Aden. To shift her, the fourth Pacific Fleet's task unit consisting of large ASW ship
Marshal Shaposhnikov, salvage tug and tanker
Pechenga sailed off Vladivostok on Feb 24.
Source: RusNavy.com, photo: frigate Neustrashimy (russiablog.org)
