The captain of a Russian-owned submersible that can work in very harsh conditions has said the vessel can be used to contain the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
“Our subs are unique. There are two of them and they can submerge and work simultaneously. Also, they are powerful enough to work with any other additional equipment,” the BBC quoted Russian skipper Yevgenii Chernyaev as saying.
“There are only four vessels in the world that can go down to 6,000m – the Mirs, French Nautile and Japanese Shinkai. The Mirs are known to be the best, and we have a very experienced team of specialists,” Chernyaev added.
The highly skilled Mir-2 captain and his crew have reportedly held numerous discussions on the spill and say they are ready to help end the environmental disaster.
However, Chernyaev believes the issue has to be addressed at a state level, with the US government requesting Russia to send the aid.
“It should all be decided on the government level. Asking [Anatoly] Sagalevich [of Russia's Shirshov Institute of Oceanology, which owns the subs] to simply bring the Mirs over is nonsense,” he said.
Chernyaev also said the fact that neither BP nor the US government had asked the Russians for help was surprising.
The Gulf of Mexico oil spill began in April 20, 2010 after a BP-operated drilling platform exploded and sank, gushing huge amounts of oil into the water.
HJL/HGH/MMN – PressTV.
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