(Author: Libyan Gazette Editorial Staff)
The Russian Foreign Ministry confirmed the release of three of its sailors on Tuesday who were detained in Libya. Andrei Krynin, Stanislav Sirotkin and Valery Savitsky were permitted to return to Russia after legal proceedings in Tripoli for an investigation concluded that accused the sailors of smuggling oil in September 2015.
The sailors were allegedly smuggling oil on a Russian tanker called Mekhanik Chebotarev when they were caught just off Libyan shores.
Negotiations led by Ramzan Kadyrov, a leader in Chechnya, as well as a visit by Chechen officials to Libya played an important role in the release of the sailors.
A chartered plane transported the sailors to Grozny, the capital of the Chechen Republic in Russia. The Russian Ministry said there are three more Russian sailors being held in Libyan.