Ghana embarrassed in detained Argentine ship case

ACCRA - Ghana's government was embarrassed as a visiting Argentine naval ship was detained in the country, deputy foreign minister Chris Kpodo told Xinhua on Wednesday.

The ARA Libertad, an Argentine tall sailing ship with a crew of more than 330, was detained in Ghana's eastern port of Tema earlier this month on a court order sought by NML Capital Ltd, which claims that Argentina owes it $300 million from defaulted bonds.

Though it has felt embarrassed, the Ghanaian government can do nothing about the matter as it has gone to the court, Kpodo said, adding that the case was between the Argentine government and a private firm, instead of two governments.

He also denied that the government had refused to refuel the detained vessel.

About 279 crew members of the detained naval ship flew back home late Wednesday on board an Air France Boeing 777 aircraft, Tema port official Jacob Adorkor told Xinhua.

The New York-based NML Capital Ltd is a subsidiary of Elliott Capital Management fund. It demanded the payment in full, as well as interest for its share of the $100 billion in bonds that Argentina defaulted on a decade ago.