Two Cambodian-flagged ships involved in the most serious of several sea-borne mishaps under the now-defunct Cambodian Shipping Corp were registered here by the Cosmos group, the newly chosen steward of Cambodia’s shipping registry, according to Ministry of Commerce Secretary of State Khek Ravy.
Both the Winner, which was seized in June and suspected of carrying cocaine, and the Sosan, a Yemen-bound ship carrying North Korean missiles that was registered under the name Pan Hope, were Cosmos ships, both Kek Ravy and a diplomatic official said.
Cosmos had registered 168 ships with the CSC, the official said.
According to its Web site, the company also operates registries in several countries identified in media reports as troublesome flags of convenience like Panama, Belize and the land-locked Bolivia.
The Web site touts low taxes and registration fees as attractive reasons to register a ship under the Cambodian flag.
“In addition, there will be no restriction on the nationality of owners, ship officers and crews, tonnage and age of vessels. Cambodian registry would be one of the world’s top 20 flags in near future,” the Web site states.
Ros Vanna, the director general of the government’s Kampuchea Shipping Agency and Broker, and Uk Chan, an undersecretary of state for the Ministry of Public Works and Transport, both declined to comment on Cosmos’ affiliation with these ships.
Another transportation official involved with selecting Cosmos put the burden of improving Cambodia’s maritime reputation on the government.
“The company is just making money. The government must ensure that international standards are maintained,” he said.
Cambodia’s ship registry was seized from the CSC by the government in June and eventually shut down after the Winner incident.
Officials have said they hope the new registry offers a clean slate for Cambodian shipping, though Seng Lim Neou, an undersecretary of state with the Council of Ministers, admitted that the paperwork is in disarray for most of the 927 ships currently registered under the Cambodian flag.
Khek Ravy said the government’s contract with Cosmos had been brokered by the Council of Ministers without consulting any ministries and lacked transparency.
