The U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet today reported the recent seizure of a large quantity of illegal Russian and Chinese weapons aboard a stateless sailing vessel in the international waters of the North Arabian Sea. The weapons included dozens of advanced Russian-made anti-tank missiles, thousands of Chinese Type 56 automatic rifles, and hundreds of PKM machine guns, sniper rifles, and rocket-propelled grenade launchers. The U.S. military continues to investigate the source of the weapons and where they were smuggled to.
According to an AFP report today, the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet said today that the U.S. military seized a large quantity of illegal Russian and Chinese weapons on board a stateless sailing ship in the international waters of the North Arabian Sea. The Bahrain-based Fifth Fleet said the USS Monterey, a ballistic missile cruiser, intercepted the sailing vessel during a two-day operation on May 6 and 7 and conducted a routine boarding and inspection of the vessel, seizing a large quantity of weapons.
The weapons included dozens of Russian-made advanced anti-tank missiles, thousands of Chinese Type 56 automatic rifles, and hundreds of PKM machine guns, sniper rifles and rocket-propelled grenade launchers,” the statement said.
The statement said the weapons are now in U.S. custody and their origin and destination are still under investigation; the U.S. assessed the sailboat’s seaworthiness after all illegal cargo was removed and provided food and water to the crew after they were interrogated and then released.
The statement did not specify the possible departure point of the sailing ship, but mentioned that the U.S. Navy regularly patrols the region and “interrupts the transport of illegal cargo, which is often used to finance terrorist and illegal activities,” the report said.
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