The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is confident the European Union (EU)-led naval forces operating in the Indian Ocean would be able to intercept the merchant ship MV Renaur, with its 24 Filipino crewmen on board, before it reaches Somalia.
“The paramount concern of the Philippine government is the safety of the Filipino crew”, DFA spokesperson J. Eduardo Malaya said yesterday.
The 70,000-ton Greek-owned vessel was more than 550 nautical miles east of India when it was attacked on Saturday morning by Somali pirates.
The Panamanian-flagged ship, which came from Port Louis, Mauritius, was “en route to Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates when it was seized,” said reports reaching the DFA. The reports added, that it is currently "heading toward the Somali coast."
Source: Inquirer Portal
