North Korea detains crew of Russian fishing vesselJuly 24, 2019 - 17:48 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - North Korea has detained 15 Russian and two South Korean crew of a fishing vessel, according to Seoul officials and the Russian embassy in Pyongyang, Al Jazeera. The crew members were detained on July 17 by border guards, the embassy said in a Facebook post on Wednesday, July 24. Russian embassy officials met the Russian captain and a deputy, who were staying at a hotel in the North Korean city of Wonsan, together with the two South Korean sailors, the statement said, adding that the rest of the crew was still on the ship in Wonsan's port. "All the crew members are in good health," it said, adding that "the clarification of what happened" was under way. The ship was identified by the embassy as the Xiang Hai Lin 8, owned by the Northeast fishery company out of Nevelsk, Russia. According to the embassy, North Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the crew was detained for "violating the rules of entry and stay" in North Korea. The embassy said it was in "constant contact" with the North Korean government and was taking all necessary measures to resolve the situation. South Korea's Unification Ministry in charge of inter-Korean affairs said on Wednesday that the two South Korean sailors were safe and Seoul has been striving to secure their freedom through consultations with their families, North Korea and Russia. The ministry said the ship left the South Korean port of Sokcho on July 16. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | The Power of One Dram to benefit Road of Life charity The companies inform that the May beneficiary of The Power of One Dram is the “Road of Life” charitable organization. Ucom General Director gives lecture at French University in Armenia The General Director of Ucom Ralph Yirikian delivered a lecture at the French University of Armenia. Kazakhstan welcomes Yerevan, Baku’s agreement to meet in Almaty Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has welcomed the agreement of Baku and Yerevan to hold negotiations in Almaty. Armenia offers to temporarily host, preserve Gaza manuscripts The Armenian Foreign Minister has said Yerevan is ready to help preserve manuscripts from the conflict zone in Gaza. |