On 25 September 2008 at about 4pm, a Belize registered cargo ship loaded with military equipment belonging to the Government of Kenya was intercepted by pirates at 257 nautical miles off the Somali Coast , East of Mogadishu.
In the consignment were 33 T72 Tanks and other assorted military spares and weapons that had been purchased from Ukraine . The incident took place within the International Waters.
The pirates have had control of the vessel for at least four months. On board the ship were 20 crew members who are in stable condition except for the unfortunate death of the captain. At this juncture I wish to convey my sincere condolences to the family, friends and relatives.
During this time, the Government of Kenya, together with the Government of Ukraine have been collaborating with the International Security organs and other agencies operating in the piracy prone areas to secure safe release of the Cargo Ship.
Today we are happy to report that the negotiations and collaborations bore fruits and as you can see we are now able to receive the vessel, the crew and the goods. We will shortly inspect the goods to confirm the status and you will be the first to know.
The 33 T-72 tanks and other weapons will be received in the normal procedure, as with all other military hardware and are expected to be used by our tank battalions.
There have been allegations that the cargo is not Kenyan but we wish to re-affirm once again that this is the property of the Kenya Government.
Piracy has become an international problem and Somali waters are currently the most dangerous. To secure the sea lane of communication, the Kenyan Government together with other 20 countries in the region recently signed an international code of conduct protocol in Djibouti aimed at repressing piracy, in the region. The code is designed to facilitate the arrest, investigation and prosecution of persons who commit piracy.
The adoption of this international instrument is a clear manifestation of the willingness of the countries of the region to act concertedly in an effort to ensure safe passage of ships within the international waters. This is in addition to other UN resolutions that we are signatory to.
Our Military together with other Navies have continued to conduct regular patrols and surveillance within the Indian Ocean . And indeed, piracy incidences have drastically decreased in the recent past.
On behalf of the Kenya Government, I wish to thank the Ukrainian Government for their efforts to secure the release of the ship. We also wish to thank all the international security organs who facilitated the release of the ship, and thank the media for their role in informing the public about the matter.
Finally I wish open the session for any questions.
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