MOSCOW, January 13 (RIA Novosti) – The owner of a Russian fishing trawler detained on suspicion of illegal fishing by Senegal 10 days ago says he is prepared to pay a security deposit to free the vessel.
“The first step is to agree on the terms of release for the ship. They have no basis for a fine. They cannot produce anything official. So the conversation has moved to discussing a deposit that could be returned,” Yury Parshev, CEO of the company that owns the Oleg Naidenov trawler, told RIA Novosti.
Parshev added that he hoped to settle all issues concerning the ship’s release on Monday.
The Oleg Naidenov was detained January 4 while operating in waters near the maritime border with neighboring Guinea-Bissau. The ship’s captain has insisted the ship was not fishing in Senegalese waters.
The vessel remains under guard in Dakar and the ship owner faces a fine up to $3 million. A Senegalese official said Sunday that the ship will be released once the fine has been paid, Russian newspaper Izvestia reported.
A Russian official earlier called the seizure an act of “economic warfare.”
