China on Wednesday said it had been in touch with the Indian authorities over the plight of Indian sailors stranded in ships off its ports, but offered no immediate way out amid a continuing stalemate that has left Indian seafarers stranded for months.
Dozens of ships carrying Australian coal have been unable to offload their cargo after China essentially banned coal imports amid deteriorating relations with Australia. China has said the ships are free to leave and has placed the responsibility on freight forwarding companies for resolving the impasse.
The companies do not want the ships to return as they stand to incur huge costs having already taken the coal off the hands of Australian exporters, and have appeared unable to find other buyers to offload their cargo. Chinese officials said last month the freight forwarders “do not want to adjust the plans for the vessel due to commercial interests which is the real cause of the situation”.
Caught in the stalemate are around 1,500 seafarers, according to Australian estimates, who have been unable to leave their ships. China hasn’t allowed the crews to be replaced and prevented them from disembarking citing COVID-19 protocols, preferring the ships to leave.
There are 23 Indian sailors on bulk carrier MV Jag Anand, which has been stuck off the Jingtang port on the cold waters of the Bohai Sea in northern China since June, and 16 others on MV Anastasia, which has been off the port of Caofeidian, also in Hebei, since September.
MEA statement
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said last week it was in touch with the Chinese authorities to address the humanitarian needs of the crew and that the vessels were not allowed to change crew because of COVID-19 restrictions. “The owner of these shipping companies as well as the receivers of the cargo had been made aware of the reasons for the delay in unloading the cargo,” MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said.
Asked why China wasn’t allowing the crew to leave on humanitarian grounds, the Chinese Foreign Ministry on Wednesday said there were “clear requirements on epidemic prevention and control at ports and on quarantine of crew members”.
“Local authorities been in close communication with the Indian side,” its spokesperson Zhao Lijian said. “They have responded in a timely manner to the Indian side’s appeals and provided necessary convenience and assistance while adhering to epidemic prevention rules.”
