Spain said on Saturday that a Spanish fishing boat carrying 26 crew which was seized by pirates off Somalia has been released, but there was no indication whether any ransom was paid or if military force was used.

"The fishing boat Playa de Bakio has been released" and is heading towards "safer waters" in the Seychelles escorted by a Spanish frigate, Spain's Deputy Prime Minister Maria Teresa Fernandez de la Vega said.

She told a news conference the crew comprising 13 Spaniards and 13 Africans are "in perfect health".

"At around 5.15pm (1515 GMT), we had the first information that the kidnappers had left the boat," she said.

The minister did not indicate the circumstances in which the crew were released, or whether a ransom had been paid.

Diplomatic work

She said only that the release was the result of a joint effort by the government and the boat's owners, as well as "diplomatic work" by Madrid.

Spanish news media said earlier that a ransom of one million euros ($1.55-million) had been demanded, and that negotiations were taking place at a London hotel.

The Spanish government had said "no official contact" had taken place with the kidnappers, but did not exclude the possibility of direct contact between the pirates and the boat's owners, who are from the northern Basque region.

The Basque regional government's Gonzalo Saenz de Samaniego, in charge of agriculture, said "complex" negotiations were conducted solely by the boat's owners.

Combating maritime piracy

The 76-metre trawler and its crew were seized on 20 April while fishing for tuna off Somalia by pirates armed with grenade launchers.

The government sent a frigate, the Mendez Nunez, to the area from the Red Sea, and a surveillance plane to the French military base in neighbouring Djibouti to carry out reconnaissance.

De la Vega said the government has taken steps to ensure that "a similar situation does not take place again".

"We must put an end to maritime piracy," she said. "Ships must be allowed to sail with confidence and with more guarantees of safety."

The coastal waters off Somalia, which has not had an effective central government for more than 17 years and is plagued by insecurity, are considered to be among the most dangerous in the world.

More than 25 ships were seized by pirates in Somali coastal waters last year despite US navy patrols, according to the International Maritime Bureau.

It advises merchant ships to stay at least 200 nautical miles (370 kilometres) from the country's coast.

The seizure of the Spanish trawler came two days after a Paris court charged six Somalis with taking the crew of a French luxury yacht hostage earlier this month.

The six were captured by French special forces, along with $200 000 (€125&mnbsp;000) of suspected ransom money, after they released the 30-strong crew of the yacht on 11 April. They had held the group hostage for a week.

AFP