Colombia Frees Chinese Ship with Weapons for Cuba

 

When the inspectors found the explosives plus 2.6 million detonators, 99 projectile heads and around 3,000 canon shells on board, the ship was detained on Feb. 28 after docking in the coastal city of Cartagena on the Caribbean coast. 

 

The documentation presented by the crew said the ship, the Da Dan Xia, was carrying grains. Beijing's foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying maintained that the Da Dan Xia was operating within Chinese and international law.

 

He said the ship was transporting common militia supplies to Cuba as part of its trade and army cooperation with the communist-run island and that it had now not violated any Global norms.

 

According to AFP report, the court ultimately ruled that because there was no way to unload the weapons and materiel, it ought to be shipped out. It therefore ordered "to safeguard Cartagena residents and Colombians in general, the Chinese-flagged Da Dan Xian, to sail for Cuba," the court statement said in part.

 

The ship's captain Wu Hong will remain in Cartagena, on investigation for weapons trafficking, officials said. The Da Dan Xia is operated by Cosco Shipping Co Ltd, part of the state-owned China Ocean Shipping Group Co.