Q: It is reported that the cargo ship “New Star” was fired upon by Russia before it sank in Russian waters. Has China lodged representations to Russia? What is the current situation?

A: On February 19, officials of the Department of Consular Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs made urgent representations once again to the minister-counsellor of the Russian Embassy in China on the incident of the cargo ship “New Star” (a Sierra Leone-flagged Chinese-owned vessel). China noted, it was reported that the ship sank after a Russian Coast Guard cruiser repeatedly fired at it and the incident had caused heavy casualties of Chinese crew members. China is highly concerned about the reports and urged the Russian side to spare no efforts to help search the missing crew members and conduct serious, responsible and thorough investigations to find out the cause of the incident as soon as possible, and inform China of the results as soon as possible. The Chinese Embassy in Russia and Consulate General in Khabarovsk also made representations to Russia at the same time.

The Russian side said it took China's concern seriously. Relevant Russian authorities started to investigate the conduct of law enforcement agencies involved in the incident and promised to inform China of the results in time.