Colombia has detained a China Cosco Shipping vessel for illegally transporting arms, Reuters reports.
The Da Dan Xia, operated by Cosco Shipping Co Ltd, was bound for Cuba when it was stopped on Saturday (28 February) in the northern port of Cartagena, on the Caribbean coast, after thousands of cannon shells, some 100 tonnes of gunpowder and other materials used to make explosives were detected during an inspection.
The cargo was listed in the ship’s records as grain products.
The captain of the vessel had been arrested, the attorney general's office said.
China's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told Reuters the ship was carrying ordinary military supplies to Cuba and was not in violation of any international obligations.
'It is completely normal military trade cooperation. At present, China is communicating with Colombia on this matter,' Hua said.
Cargo documentation the captain presented did not match the load the ship was found to be carrying, Luis Gonzalez, national director of the Colombian attorney general's office, told Reuters.
'Around 100 tonnes of powder, 2.6 million detonators, 99 projectiles and around 3,000 cannon shells were found,' Gonzalez added.
