After months of coordinated initiatives and actions on the part of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Shipping Island Policy, the Chinese authorities have accepted Greece’s requests, and the six Greek seamen and the Technical Inspector of the Greek-flagged ‘ANGELIC POWER’ are already on their journey home to Greece. From the moment the Court of the People’s Republic of China barred the ship from sailing, the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Shipping Island Policy coordinated their moves to secure the return of the Greek seamen and to ensure good living conditions for the crew, who remained on the vessel for over 15 months. The Ministry of Shipping and Island Policy, with the generous assistance of the Angelicoussis Shipping Group and the Onassis Foundation, has arranged to cover the immediate needs in fuel, food and drinking water for the two Greek seamen (Captain and First Mate) and 13 Filipino seamen who will remain on the vessel. The competent services of the Ministry of Shipping Island Policy have imposed fines of over €500,000 on the company operating the vessel, and the case file has been submitted to the Piraeus Prosecutor. In this context, it should be noted that the relevant services of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs – at the Central Service in Athens, the Greek Embassy in Beijing, and the Consulate General in Guangzhou – were activated from the outset in order to provide all necessary assistance to the seamen, in constant contact with the Chinese authorities. These efforts continue for the remaining Greek and Filipino seamen. Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nikos Dendias underlined his satisfaction that the predicament of most of the Greek seamen ended well, thanks to the Foreign Ministry's excellent co-operation with the Ministry of Shipping, and thanked all those who contributed to their return. The Minister of Shipping Island Policy, Ioannis Plakiotakis, stressed that “It is a day of great joy for our sailors and for their families, who are welcoming their loved ones home. It is, at the same time, a day of particular satisfaction for the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Shipping Island Policy, which, through continuous and coordinated actions over many months, have succeeded in obtaining their release. Once again it is confirmed that the Greek state acts effectively to address problems faced by our seafarers anywhere in the world. I hope and believe that we will soon have good news regarding the Greek and Filipino seamen who remain on the ship. We fully support them while continuing our efforts to achieve their repatriation."
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