China denied allegations of imposing an unofficial ban on commercial ships with Indian crew to berth in its ports.
According to international information, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told a media briefing that China has never imposed such restrictions.
All started when the ‘All India Seafarer & General Workers Union’ issued a written letter to the Indian government claiming that China is banning Indian seafarers.
The union claims that the ban prevents Indian nationals from entering Chinese ports, causing 21,000 Indian sailors to face potential job losses.
Moreover, Indonesia opened crew changes for everyone except Indian and South Africans.
Earlier, China had banned Indian seafarers, as during 2021, 18 Indian crew of the MSC ship Anastasia were stranded off China.
The crew denied entry and the problem was not resolved until MSC diverted the ship to Japan after five months of negotiations and waiting.
