MOSCOW, October 5 (RIA Novosti) - Wives of four Russian sailors kept on board the Arctic Sea ship, which was hijacked in the Atlantic in July, have asked Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to authorize their immediate return home.
"An investigation commission finished its work on September 16, but our husbands still remain on board the ship. It has been 49 days since the ship was freed by the Russian Navy, but they have not been replaced, although the replacement crew is ready," Sovfracht, a Russian maritime journal, quoted an open letter to Putin written by the women.
The Finnish-owned, Maltese-flagged cargo ship manned by a Russian crew and listed as carrying lumber from Russia to Algeria, was reportedly boardered by a group of eight men on July 24. Officials later said it had disappeared in the Atlantic. It was freed off Cape Verde on August 16 by a Russian warship.
"The current destination of the cargo ship is unknown. Our husbands need emergency medical and psychological assistance...," the wives said in the letter, asking for Putin's help in the return of their husbands.
According to the most recent reports, the vessel, with the captain and three crew members on board, is now heading to the Mediterranean Sea, being convoyed by Russia's Ladny frigate.
The other 11 crew members and eight suspected hijackers were flown to Moscow in late August to be questioned by the Russian authorities. The sailors have reportedly now returned home to the northern Russian city of Arkhangelsk, while the hijackers have been arrested and charged with piracy and kidnapping.
The Arctic Sea has been the focus of media speculation, with some reports saying it was carrying Russian S-300 surface-to-air missiles to Iran or Syria.
Russian investigators said they had not found any compromising cargo on board.
The ship was originally expected to dock at the port of Las Palmas, the capital of Spain's Canary Islands, to be handed over to Malta on September 18. However, the Maltese authorities unexpectedly refused to take part in the handover of the ship, and the vessel remained anchored 25 kilometers offshore until September 24.
According to the letter, the wives of the four sailors have been informed by Russian investigators that their husbands will be sent home after a probe and some formal procedures have been finalized.
