Sofia: The Indian Navy’s successful execution of a rescue mission on the kidnapped Bulgarian ship, MV Ruen, on Monday was acknowledged by Bulgarian President Rumen Radev.
In December 2023, the Rouen ship carrying eight Bulgarians, nine Myanmarans, and one Angolan national was taken prisoner by pirates in the Arabian Sea. In a formal post on X, Rumen Ramdev expressed his profound appreciation to Prime Minister Modi for the valiant efforts of the Indian Navy in saving the crew of the hijacked Bulgarian ship Ruen, which included seven citizens of Bulgaria.
Bulgarian Foreign Minister Mariya Gabriel in a Facebook post on Saturday said that she held a conversation with Indian Ambassador to Bulgaria said on Saturday that she held a conversation with the Indian Ambassador to Bulgaria Sanjay Rana for the Indian Navy’s operation on MV Ruen and thanked him for rescuing Bulgarian nationals.
Additionally, in a recent Facebook post, Foreign Minister of Bulgaria Mariya Gabriel stated that the crew of the ship “Rouen,” which was hijacked on December 14, 2023, including seven Bulgarian citizens, was freed on March 16 with assistance from the Indian Navy.
She commended the Indian troops for their efforts, which resulted in the release of the ship’s whole crew. All the sailors are in good health and efforts are being currently made for them to sailors to safely return to Bulgaria. She also spoke regarding the incident which the ship was carrying eight Bulgarians, nine Myanmar and one Angolan citizen on board. It was captured by the pirates in the Arabian Sea in December Last year.
PM Narendra Modi responded to the Bulgarian President’s message saying that India is happy that seven Bulgarian nationals are safe and will be returning home soon. PM Modi in an X post mentioned that India is committed to protecting freedom of navigation and combating piracy and terrorism in the Indian Ocean region.
‘The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in close cooperation with all competent institutions, the overseas representation of the Republic of Bulgaria in the region and international partners is actively involved in the efforts to release the Bulgarian crew’. The Indian ambassador in Sofia, Ambassador Sanjay Rana, was also spoken with on March 16 at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Indian side was also asked to provide support and take all necessary precautions to ensure the crew’s safety and well-being. She concluded by expressing her sincere gratitude for the Indian side’s support in the process of freeing the Bulgarian seamen.
