The Arctic Sea ends mystery voyage in Malta with Russian guards

The Arctic Sea ends mystery voyage in Malta with Russian guards

www.timesonline.co.uk

The cargo ship allegedly hijacked by pirates amid claims that it was smuggling missiles to Iran has ended its three-month odyssey in Malta after being tested for nuclear contamination.

The Arctic Sea was allowed to enter the Grand Harbour in Valletta last night after the Maltese Civil Protection Department declared it free of radiation and chemical hazards.

(visit the link for the full news article)



Edit to add additional sources:

MSN News

Yahoo News

Telergaph Online

Vessel Tracker Website

EIN News

[edit on 29/10/2009 by moobaawoof]

Wierd - I'd almost forgot all the hoo-ha about the Arctic Sea.

Times Online has reported the ship is now in Malta & that no evidence of rumoured missle cargo or any radiation anywhere in sight.

For me: That's all good & well & that - but it's still a bit suspect considering everything that was going on at the time. There was too much secrecy, plenty of rumour, pirates & missiles & Iran & Israel. Secret meetings between Russia & Israel at first denied then later admitted.

And the money shot: the ship has been guarded by 2 Russian warships since August 17th - October 29th... so plenty of time to tidy up then...

I've got no idea what was on board, I don't know if the cargo genuinely had any radioactive trace or not & anyway, even if it did, maybe they're lying now by saying it's clean. Maybe there's a way to remove radioactive trace? (I don't think there is)(Maybe the whole ship is glowing green for all I know!). Maybe the missiles don't have a radioactive trace. Or maybe some other cargo entirely.

We might never know - but it doesn't matter, I still fully believe something dodgey enough to be kept a big enough secret was on board. Something hugely important/dangerous.

www.timesonline.co.uk
(visit the link for the full news article)




[edit on 29/10/2009 by moobaawoof]

Cheers Moo for bringing us up to date. After Malta insisting that the ship should be returned to its rightful owners and refusing entry to Malta, it now seems to be accepting that Arctic Sea Ltd. in Malta are the rightful owners. So what was it all about another 2009 advertising scam? who knows.

Arctic Sea: Cruise Itinery

20th July: Arctic Sea leaves Finland heading for Algeria to deliver $1.7 million (£1 million) worth of timber. (Ship owned by Solchart of Finland).
22nd July: Boarded by pirates (arrr!!...jim-lad..)

17th August: Russian Navy seizes ship from pirates off Cape Verde, West Africa, 2500 miles (4000km) off course.

Sometime in September:
Attempted docking at Las Palmas in Gran Canary failed due to disputes about the presence of Russian Military.
Algeria refuses ship to enter it's waters.
Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, made a secret visit to Moscow for talks with Mr Medvedev and Mr Putin. The Kremlin and Israel initially denied that any visit had taken place, but later admitted that Mr Netanyahu had been in Russia.

28th October: Russian Investigative Committee released the ship from a detention order after the Maltese Civil Protection Department find no trace of any suspicious cargo, radiation or chemical hazards.
29th October: Finally docks at the Grand Harbour in Valletta, Malta.


These are my favorite 2 quotes:

Nobody has explained why a ship transporting a relatively inexpensive load should have been the target of the first documented act of piracy in Northern European waters for centuries.

Eleven other crewmen were held in Moscow for a week for interrogation by the Federal Security Service. They and the eight alleged pirates had been flown to Russia on three IL76 Transport Aircraft from Cape Verde, adding to speculation about a secret military cargo. The Russian aircraft are used to transport heavy weaponry.

bold emphasis mine.




[edit on 29/10/2009 by moobaawoof]

reply to post by smurfy


...hmm....marketing scam? - haha - hadn't thought of that, I like it, I think I want to buy one & I don't even know what they're selling...

There is one other piece of the puzzle that is beginning to look like it may come together to form part of the picture.

Its the question of the "repairs". Why does it now need repairs? There was a suggestion that it had been repaired before this journey began. Some people thought a part of the ship had been altered in some way to accommodate a secret cargo.

Did the ship require busting apart, while out at sea for so long, so that the secret cargo could be removed, perhaps to one of the war ships?

Could that be why it is now once again in need of repair - to put things back together?

reply to post by wayno


Good Point, hadn't thought of that...

Also, I just googled the IL76 Aircraft mentioned in the article...it's BIG & can carry a 50 ton payload....& they had 3 of them...

...mmmm....150 tons of secret military hardware...wonder what the hell it was...?

[edit on 29/10/2009 by moobaawoof]

Originally posted by wayno
There was a suggestion that it had been repaired before this journey began.

It was more than a suggestion.

Arctic Sea Kaliningrad Which is a strange choice of ports to be repaired at since its normal route is nowhere near there.

reply to post by makeitso


Well spotted - thanks for all the links.

Found this one: Russian Expert in Arctic Sea Freighter Case Flees Country

Hadn't read that story before though it's dated Thursday September 03 2009.

MOSCOW — The Russian maritime expert who was among the first to raise the alarm about the mysterious disappearance of the Arctic Sea freighter said Thursday he has fled the country after receiving a threatening phone call.

Mikhail Voitenko, the editor of the online Maritime Bulletin-Sovfracht, posted an article about the ship's disappearance on Aug. 8. He then speculated that the ship might have been carrying a secret cargo, possibly weapons.

There has been mounting speculation that the freighter was intercepted by Israel to prevent the delivery of missiles or nuclear materials to Iran or Syria.

...So, he speculates publicly the Arctic Sea might be carrying weapons & he gets threatening phone calls...

OK - It's a big complicated crazy puzzle with loads of pieces & I don't know what really happened - but the whole thing smells fishy.


[edit on 31/10/2009 by moobaawoof]

It's easy to rule out the secret missile cargo. The missiles in question aren't small, they wouldn't have been able to hide them anywhere. Finnish customs declared the ship empty and with no visible repairs or signs of recent painting.

reply to post by PsykoOps


hmmm - ok, I dunno...
Anyway, all I do know is the whole story is kind of funky with the truth.

[edit on 31/10/2009 by moobaawoof]

Fascinating I wonder what the highly powerful and little regarded, super secretive Knights of Malta are up to these days?

Never a good sign when Malta gets involved in the equation.

Originally posted by PsykoOps
It's easy to rule out the secret missile cargo. The missiles in question aren't small, they wouldn't have been able to hide them anywhere. Finnish customs declared the ship empty and with no visible repairs or signs of recent painting.

Did anybody bother to look UNDER the ship?



"Keel-hauling" - It's not just for pirates anymore!