Armenia calls for help in securing release of suspected mercenaries
Arminfo
23 Mar 04
YEREVAN
The accusations against Armenian pilots of plotting to overthrow the
government of Equatorial Guinea are rather contradictory and are in no
way related to their work, the press secretary of the Foreign
Ministry, Gamlet Gasparyan, has told a press conference.
He said that the Guinean authorities are trying to present the
Armenian pilots as mercenaries which they are not. They are
professional pilots with many years of experience. The authorities of
Equatorial Guinea claim that the Armenian citizens arrived in the
country by boat whereas they arrived in the Guanine capital Malabo on
their plane.
The charges against the Armenian pilots of gathering intelligence do
not hold up as without the knowledge of local traditions, language and
location they could not have been used in the espionage activities
during their two months of work in Malabo.
Gamlet Gasparyan noted that, through the mediation of the diplomatic
representative offices in Moscow and New York, they are working with
the authorities of New Guinea to clarify the situation and secure the
release of the pilots. The Armenian Foreign Ministry also appealed to
other friendly countries, in particular, to Russia and France, which
through their diplomatic missions in Malabo could help the detained
pilots. Diplomats of the French embassy have already visited the
Armenian prisoners and noted that their state of health is
satisfactory.
Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan sent a letter to the Kongo
Foreign Ministry calling for its help in securing the release of the
Armenian pilots. The Armenian Foreign Ministry also appealed to the
International Red Cross Committee and the International Amnesty
Organization.
If need be, the Armenian Foreign Ministry is prepared to send its
diplomats to Equatorial Guinea so as to resolve the issue on the spot.