Georgia remands Turkish captain, to sell ship: Reports
A
Georgian court has remanded in custody the Turkish captain of a tanker
detained this week delivering fuel to the breakaway region of Abkhazia.
Thursday, 20 August 2009 12:26
A
Georgian court has remanded in custody the Turkish captain of a tanker
detained this week delivering fuel to the breakaway region of Abkhazia,
as Tbilisi tries to enforce a blockade on Russian-backed separatists.
The
tanker remains in the Georgian port of Poti, and Georgian media reports
said it could be confiscated and put up for auction.
The
captain faces up to 24 years imprisonment if found guilty of smuggling
and violation of a Georgian law banning unauthorised economic activity
in the country's two rebel regions.
He was remanded in custody late on Wednesday, a Justice Ministry spokeswoman said. No date has yet been set for a trial.
The
tanker, operating under the flag of Panama with a Turkish and Azeri
crew, was detained in the Black Sea off the Georgian coast on Monday
carrying 2,000 tonnes of petrol and 700 tonnes of diesel.
Abkhazia issued an angry response, saying it was the third case of "Georgian piracy" this year.
"This
incident proves the continuation of the Georgian policy to destabilise
the situation in the region," Abkhaz leader Sergei Bagapsh said in a
statement on Wednesday.
He warned Abkhazia would take "proportional measures" to protect cargo deliveries, without elaborating.
Georgia
stepped up efforts to isolate Abkhazia and landlocked South Ossetia in
the wake of last August's five-day war with Russia, when Russia crushed
a Georgian assault on South Ossetia.
Legislation adopted in
October banned economic and commercial activities on the territory of
both regions without the permission of the Georgian government.
Almost
all investment in South Ossetia and Abkhazia comes from Russia, which
recognised the regions on its southern border as independent states
with Russian military backing after the war. Shunned by the West, both
regions are dependent on Russian aid and attracting Russian investment.
Under Georgian law, foreigners also face prosecution if they
enter the territories without the permission of the Georgian
authorities.
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