A Venezuelan navy boat sank after a disastrous attempt to ram a German-owned cruise ship in the Caribbean Sea, it is alleged.
The crew of the cruise liner RGCS Resolute say the Venezuelan patrol boat fired gunshots and ‘purposely collided’ with the vessel after ordering it to sail towards Venezuela.
However, the Resolute is equipped with a strengthened hull for ice expeditions and the collision caused far greater damage to the patrol boat Naiguata.
Venezuela’s defence ministry – which blames the cruise ship for the collision – did not say that the Naiguata sank, but widespread reports say that it did.
The Venezuelan military patrol boat Naiguata (pictured) allegedly sank after a disastrous attempt to ram a cruise ship in international waters
The RCGS Resolute, which is equipped with a strengthened hull for ice expeditions, suffered only minor damage in the collision (pictured)
Venezuela’s autocratic leader Nicolas Maduro has already raged about ‘piracy and terrorism’ after the disputed collision on Monday, Spanish-speaking media says.
‘It is as if a 100-kilo boxer grabbed a boy apprentice boxer and beat him,’ Maduro said, claiming that the cruise ship had been the aggressor.
The Resolute sails under the Portuguese flag but is managed by the German-based company Columbia Cruise Services.
A statement from Columbia said the cruise ship was ‘subject to an act of aggression by the Venezuelan navy in international waters’.
The cruise ship, which was carrying 32 crew and no passengers, was idling during maintenance on its way to the Dutch-owned island of Curacao, Columbia says.
Shortly after midnight, the ship was approached by the patrol boat Naiguata which allegedly ordered it to sail for a Venezuelan island, Isla de Margarita.
Then, ‘gun shots were fired and, shortly thereafter, the navy vessel approached the starboard side at speed and purposely collided with the RCGS Resolute’, Columbia says.
‘The navy vessel continued to ram the starboard bow in an apparent attempt to turn the ship’s head towards Venezuelan territorial waters,’ it is alleged.
The crew of the Resolute (pictured) say the ship was idling in the Caribbean Sea on its way to the Dutch-owned island of Curacao
The crew of the RCGS Resolute (file photo) say they were shot at and rammed by the Venezuelan patrol boat in the Caribbean Sea
‘While the Resolute sustained minor damages, not affecting vessel’s seaworthiness, it occurs that the navy vessel suffered severe damages while making contact with the ice-strengthened bulbous bow of the ice-class expedition cruise vessel Resolute and started to take water,’ Columbia says.
‘Ready to support anytime, the Resolute remained for over one hour in vicinity of the scene and reached out to the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre [in] Curacao.
‘This is an international body which oversees any maritime emergencies. All attempts to contact those on board the navy ship have been left unanswered.
‘Only after receiving the order to resume passage full ahead by the MRCC and that further assistance is not required, the Resolute, currently safely moored in the port of Willemstad, continued sailing towards her destination at Curacao.
‘A full investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident will now be carried out.’
Venezuela’s defence ministry disputes this account, alleging that the cruise ship had caused the collision.
Officials in Caracas say the crew of the patrol boat were rescued, acknowledging that the Naiguata suffered ‘damage of great magnitude’ without saying that it sank.
Venezuela’s autocratic president Nicolas Maduro (pictured at the microphone) has raged about ‘terrorism and piracy’ after the disputed collision
The Venezuelan statement says the Naiguata ‘was undergoing a maritime traffic control procedure’ at the time.
‘The action of the ship Resolute is considered cowardly and criminal, since it did not attend the rescue of the crew, in breach of international regulations that regulate the rescue of life at sea, the defence ministry claims.
‘Our immediate search and rescue work, together with the professional and courageous performance of our personnel, allowed the full rescue of the crew.’
Some reports have linked the clash to a recent dispute between Venezuela and Portugal which led to Portuguese airline TAP being banned from the country.
Venezuela accused the carrier of allowing opposition leader Juan Guaido’s uncle to bring explosives on a flight to Caracas.
Guadio claimed the title of interim president last year and was backed by many Western countries, but Maduro remains in effective charge.
Portugal’s foreign minister said it was ‘not an incident between states’ but has offered to help investigate, Portuguese media says.