DV: After months in captivity by the Houthis, yesterday the Bulgarian sailors Lyubomir Chanev and Danail Veselinov returned to Bulgaria. As they themselves said - they were aware that their release would become a fact as soon as Israel concluded a ceasefire agreement with Hamas. Whose credit is there for the release not only of the Bulgarians, but also of a number of other sailors of different nationalities who were also captured?
Ruslan Trad: The ceasefire agreement in Gaza is definitely one of the most important and main factors, because of which we can welcome the Bulgarian sailors in Bulgaria today. I believe - and judging from the reactions of colleagues in my sector, I am not the only one who thinks so - that if there had been no development in Gaza and no deal had been reached for a hostage exchange and ceasefire, the Galaxy Leader ship would still be in the Yemeni port of Hodeidah, and the crew would either have continued to be held captive by the Houthis or would have been handed over to others - as happened with the crew of the RUEN ship, which was handed over to Somali pirates, and the crew was used as a human shield until they were released by the Indian Navy after a special operation by New Delhi.
I doubt that the Galaxy Leader sailors were aware of what was happening outside the ship. They probably guessed, received individual news and stories, but in general they are in a limited environment given the fact that they are prisoners and no ransom is being demanded for them, but political demands are being made. In other words, their fate is directly related to the Gaza deal. If we have to name the main parties involved in the negotiations - definitely Japan as the affected party, since the ship is operated by a Japanese company, Israel, since the ship is connected to an Israeli businessman, and Oman as an intermediary. Bulgaria, of course, is a party because the captain and the second captain are Bulgarian citizens, but Bulgaria joined at a late stage, there was no unified team due to the political situation in the country, the lack of a government and probably insufficient information.
DV: MEP Elena Yoncheva also expressed her gratitude to Bulgarian political figures. Did they have any role in the release of the sailors from the Galaxy Leader?
Ruslan Trad: As far as I know, the mentioned political figures have no relation to the release of the sailors. It is likely that with their help a plane was sent to pick up the sailors from Oman, who had secured logistics and a team - for example, translators and others, but they are not an active party in the negotiations. Yoncheva's statements, which also mention the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, are solely political in nature.
DV: This was not the only ship with Bulgarian participation that suffered from the conflict in the Red Sea. What has the state done in this more than a year?
Ruslan Trad: I would also like to know what was done throughout 2024. As you mentioned, the Galaxy Leader is not the only vessel somehow connected to Bulgaria and suffered during attacks by the Houthis. There are two more cases - with the ships RUEN and RUBYMAR. The second one marks black statistics - it became the first ship to sink after the start of the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea. The crew managed to escape after the missile attack - they were lucky.
The other ship - RUEN - was attacked back in December 2023, the month after the Galaxy Leader was captured. There are eight Bulgarian citizens on board, one of whom was injured during the attack, and India is negotiating his release to be taken for treatment in Oman. The same ship was handed over to Somali pirates. Such a fate - that is, to be handed over to other forces, was also expected for the Galaxy Leader. RUEN also notes black statistics - it becomes the first cargo ship since 2017 that Somali pirates have successfully boarded.
Author: Mina Kirkova