The tanker "African Pride," Panama, port of registration, was arrested in Nigeria last fall on suspected smuggling of 11,300 tons of crude petroleum. There are thirteen Russians on the crew. Court proceedings have been launched.
Justice Grace Okeke flatly refused to bail off the Russians lest they flee the country. She ordered her subordinates to keep close watch on the defendants.
The sailors' plight dominated the agenda as Alexander Saltanov, Russia's Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Daniel Suleiman, Nigerian Ambassador to Russia, met in conference today.
Russia thinks the court proceedings are badly procrastinated, pointed out Mr. Saltanov, who called the ambassador's attention to the conditions in which the suspects are kept.
Russia has made repeated appeals to Nigeria on the issue on the high and other levels. No improvement has come, despite all, the deputy minister said emphatically, reports the Ministry of Foreign Affairs press and information department.
The atmosphere round the trial and the Russian defendants' conditions are alarming, said the ministry.
