The Russian Consulate General in Istanbul is making every effort so that Russian sailors stuck on the Palmali group tankers could return to Russia as soon as possible.

This was reported to RT in the Information and Press Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry.

“From the very beginning of the problem situation, the Russian Consulate General in Istanbul has been making the maximum possible efforts within the framework of its powers to assist in resolving the Russian crew members' problems with staying on board, including organizing everyday life, meals, delivering necessary medicines on board, and rendering medical assistance, "representatives of the diplomatic department told RT.

Ten ships

Earlier, RT talked about the Russian crew of the Mubariz Ibrahimov tanker, owned by the Palmali group of companies Mubariz Gurbanoglu (Mansimova).

The sailors were trapped in the port of Istanbul.

Employers who hired Russians stopped paying wages and getting in touch with them.

There were food interruptions on the ship.

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According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Palmali operates over 10 commercial vessels in Turkey's territorial waters, most of which have Russian citizens on board.

The state of affairs in these courts is similar. 

Palmali went bankrupt, and the tankers are not used for their intended purpose, while the company's ship crews have not been paid salaries for more than eight months, the diplomatic department said.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the company's debt to each crew exceeds $ 250,000.

At the same time, as noted in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the company, according to the statement of its interim manager, is unable to fulfill its financial obligations to the seafarers, as well as to change them due to the lack of funds on the current accounts.

"The sale of tankers to another company is allegedly difficult due to the presence of collateral in front of the banking structures," - explained the representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Do not let go ashore

The sailors cannot go home.

As the captain of the tanker Mubariz Ibrahimov Alexei Korotkov told RT, the sailors turned to the insurance company AlfaStrakhovanie, which agreed to buy tickets to Russia and even reimburse part of the wage arrears.

“But here the captain of the port of Istanbul stood in our way and did not give us permission to go ashore.

He motivated this by the fact that it is unsafe to leave the ship in the roadstead without officers.

A shift must be provided, which the company cannot do in any way, ”said Korotkov.

The Russian Foreign Ministry notes that the captains have repeatedly reported the difficult situation on the ships to the relevant port services and other official authorities of Turkey responsible for the safety of navigation, but there has still been no reaction.

As noted in the Russian Foreign Ministry, now consular officers are in constant contact with the captains of the tankers and the interim management of the Palmali group of companies.

In addition, official notes on the developing situation were sent to the Turkish Foreign Ministry, letters to the Administration of the ports of Istanbul and Yalova with a request to take urgent measures to ensure the descent of Russian citizens ashore and sending them home.

Connection with terrorists

The owner of Palmali Group, Azerbaijani billionaire Mubariz Gurbanoglu (Mansimov), is now under arrest in Turkey.

According to media reports, he is suspected of having links with the preacher Fethullah Gulen's organization FETO, whose supporters Ankara accuses of attempting an armed coup in 2016.

FETO itself is considered a terrorist organization in Turkey.

Gurbanoglu faces up to 15 years in prison, he denies all charges against him.

In 2015, Forbes estimated the fortune of Gurbanoglu at $ 1.3 billion, and the fleet of the Palmali group of companies consisted of 200 vessels. 

However, in 2018, the Russian branch of Palmali was declared bankrupt.

The main creditor is Sberbank, which accounts for about 13 billion rubles.

In July 2019, a criminal case against the director of Palmali LLC Alexei Mikhelev was brought to court in Rostov.

He is accused of tax evasion and concealment of funds due to which taxes are to be collected.

On October 19, 2020, the Moscow Transport Investigation Department of the RF IC announced the initiation of a criminal case due to non-payment of salaries to the crew of the Mubariz Ibragimov ship.

According to the IC, the company's debt is more than 14.6 million rubles.

“Despite the existing and growing debts, the management of the said company, acting out of personal interest, expressed in the desire to create the appearance of a favorable state of financial and economic activities, while having sufficient funds for payment received on the settlement accounts from various counterparties, continued transportation cargoes by means of long-distance navigation vessels, without paying wages to the ship's crew members, ”the department noted.