§ Mr. Home RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will set out the information available to him on the actions taken by NATO or the WEU monitoring forces in the Adriatic in relation to the passage to Montenegrin ports of each of the motor vessels Dimitrakis, Novotsak II and East River, showing the dates on which each was identified, challenged or boarded, and the purported port of destination.
§ Mr. Garel-JonesI have been asked to reply.
MV Dimitrakis was boarded by a NATO monitoring vessel on 18 January 1993. It gave its port of destination as Koper—Slovenia—and was allowed to proceed. It then diverted to the Montenegrin port of Bar; on emerging, it was intercepted and towed to Brindisi for inspection.
MV Novotsak II was boarded by a Western European Union vessel on 23 January 1993. Having declared Venice 21W as its port of destination, it was allowed to proceed. It then diverted to Bar, where it remains. We have asked the Russian authorities to take up the matter with the vessel's owners.
MV East River was intercepted, while stationary in international waters, by a NATO vessel on 11 March. It declared its port of destination as Venice. It claimed to have engine, gyro and radar problems; an offer of assistance was declined. Some hours later it was seen heading for Bar; NATO vessels were unable to prevent it reaching Montenegrin territorial waters. The Liberian authorities have suspended the ship's licences. We have asked the Greek authorities to pursue the matter with the ship's owners.