“We will always do our part, but don’t think we should be part of the long-term solution and be paid for,” said Anne Steffensen, director general and ceo of DSA, at media briefing for Danish Maritime Days.
She was responding to a Spanish initiative to pay shipping company to pick-up migrants.
“We would much rather urge governments to spend money on Triton, not the payment of shipowners,”
She noted that merchant ships did not have enough crew on board to cope with the numbers of migrants, vessels did not have the space onboard for refugees, and the crew were not trained to deal with these situations.
Shipping companies would continue there traditional role of rescuing those in trouble at sea. “Shipowners should play the role they do now and will always be there for people in distress.”
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