A passenger ship in Polish waters fled back to Germany this week, ignoring a "warning shot" from a signalling pistol, Poland's legal affairs officer in Berlin confirmed Thursday. Both Germany and Poland were at pains Thursday to avoid recriminations about the incident. Germany's Foreign Office said it and German interior officials were trying to settle the matter quickly "in the spirit of good-neighbourly relations."
Three Polish customs officers who were investigating possible smuggling on the Adler Dania, a floating shop, were taken to Germany against their will, Marek Wieruszewski, consul for legal affairs at the Polish embassy in Berlin, said. They returned home by land. This could be described as a "mini-kidnapping," but the Tuesday incident had "in no way" caused international tension, he said.
The Adler Dania is operated by a German ferry company. It was taking 45 passengers on an "international" voyage to buy cigarettes and alcohol at cheaper prices. Since the incident, just before it docked in Swinoujscie, it has been declared undesirable in Poland. |