New Zealand's government has paid Samoa 10m Samoan Tala (NZD 6m; £2.6m) after one of its naval ships crashed into a reef in Samoan waters before catching fire and sinking last year.
HMNZS Manawanui started leaking oil into the ocean after it sank, with reports of sea turtles dying and slicks appearing on nearby Samoan beaches.
New Zealand's Foreign Minister Winston Peters stated that the payment was made at Samoa's request.
HMNZS Manawanui was the first ship New Zealand lost at sea since World War Two. It was one of nine ships in the country’s small naval fleet and had been surveying an area of sea floor that had not been mapped in decades when it ran aground.
All 75 people aboard were successfully rescued from the vessel as it began listing off the coast of the Samoan island Upolu exactly a year ago.
Despite being seen billowing smoke as it went down, Samoan officials later confirmed that not all its fuel had burned off, leading to oil leakages that sparked concerns for local marine wildlife.
Since the ship's grounding, HMNZS Manawanui has remained on the reef, but efforts have been made to remove diesel fuel, oil, and other pollutants while a New Zealand naval team is tasked with clearing debris.
Peters emphasized the New Zealand government’s commitment to collaborating with Samoa regarding the ship's future and acknowledged the disruption caused to local communities.
He stated, 'Minimizing any possible environmental impacts and supporting the response are our absolute priorities.'
Any disciplinary proceedings related to the incident are yet to be determined, but the New Zealand Defence Force is nearing the conclusion of its investigation.
An inquiry revealed that a series of human errors, including a failure to disengage the ship's autopilot, were responsible for the crash.
In the wake of the accident, the captain of the ship faced online trolling regarding her gender, which was condemned by New Zealand's defence minister as unwarranted criticism from 'armchair admirals.'
