Three sailors died in a collision of Russian and Japanese ships in the Sea of Okhotsk

According to Interfax, referring to the Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Marine Rescue Coordination Center (MRCC), in the collision, the entire Japanese crew - six people - was in the water. Russian sailors took them aboard the Amur, three were alive, three were killed. As clarifies Kyodo, killed 60-year-old chief engineer and two 30-year-old crew member.

The MRCC indicated that the Russian vessel headed to the Japanese port of Mombetsu for investigation. RIA Novosti reports that the Amur goes to the port without an escort, on its own. The Russian embassy will assist the Russian crew. The diplomatic mission also expressed the hope that the incident will be investigated objectively and impartially.

Experts at the center suggest that the collision could have provoked difficult weather conditions, since visibility in the area did not allow the teams to visually identify each other.

The Japanese side will take up the investigation of the incident.

"It is necessary to establish whether the equipment warning of a dangerous approach was available and worked on the ships, and what were the actions of both teams", - the MRCC said.

According to the NHK TV channel, the accident happened on May 26 at about 6 am, 23 kilometers northeast of the port of Monbetsu. The patrol boats of the coast guard went to the scene.

Kyodo also adds that the Japanese ship capsized due to the collision.