Belgium has asked for 10 million euros in bail to release a detained ship from the Russian shadow fleet, local media reported. The ship flies a Guinean flag and was detained on March 1 in the Belgian port of Zeebrugge. Belgian Defense Minister Theo Franken specified that the vessel belongs to the Russian shadow fleet for fuel trade in violation of EU sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine, BTA reported.
The Russian captain of the ship was escorted by police to Brussels airport yesterday after he was allowed to depart. The other crew members include citizens of India, Georgia and Indonesia. Initially, they were not allowed to leave the ship and were only provided with the bare necessities by the Belgian authorities. The crew was recently allowed to disembark and later leave Belgium after the shipowner sent a new crew to replace them and maintain the tanker until the dispute was resolved.
The ship was seized by 93 Belgian soldiers, and the crew was unarmed and did not resist. The shipowner has filed a lawsuit demanding the immediate release of the tanker and has challenged the legality of the detention. According to a spokesman for the Belgian Ministry of Transport, a court decision is unlikely to be reached soon. The Belgian side notes that numerous violations of international law have been found in connection with the ship's movement and need to be remedied before the vessel can be released.