The upcoming Maritime Labor Convention further complicates the already heated debate over the presence of armed guards aboard vessels by bringing in the question of whether to consider them as seafarers.
Of course, some question the place of guards onboard the ships at all, while others in the industry see them as a necessary counterpiracy measure.
Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades expresed full support for the country's shipping industry in an address to members of the Cyprus Shipping Chamber at their 24th Annual General Meeting in Limassol last week.
