Britain stops Russian ship suspected of carrying arms for Syria

A Russian ship stopped in British waters for allegedly carrying attack helicopters and missiles for Syria "appears to be on its way back towards Russia," Britain's Foreign Secretary William Hague said Tuesday, DPA reported.

Speaking in parliament, Hague linked the incident involving the MV Alaed, a ship owned by Russian cargo line Femco, to Britain's adherence to the European Union arms embargo on Syria.

"I am pleased that the ship has turned back and appears to be on its way towards Russia," said Hague. Earlier, British marine insurer Standard Club confirmed that it had withdrawn insurance cover from the vessel under its own rules.

"We were informed on Friday evening that the ship might be carrying weapons, in particular attack helicopters, missiles and non-specific munitions," said a statement from Standard Club.

Investigations were carried out as to whether any exclusion clauses had been broken. "We have already informed the ship owner that their insurance cover automatically in view of the nature of the voyage."

According to a report in the Daily Telegraph newspaper, the MV Alaed was sailing off the north-west coast of Scotland when it was stopped on its journey.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) in London said that "no UK military assets" were involved in tracking the vessel.

"We are aware of a ship carrying a consignment of refurbished Russian-made attack helicopters heading to Syria," a statement released earlier by the Foreign Office said.

It said that Hague had made it clear to his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, during a meeting on June 14, that "all defence shipments to Syria must stop."

"We are working closely with international partners to ensure that all measures taken against the Syrian regime, including EU sanctions, are fully implemented."