Finland has removed a cargo of 69 missiles found aboard a merchant ship that docked in the country and allowed the vessel to leave, transport safety officials said Monday. The Thor Liberty was detained on December 15 in Kotka, southeast Finland, and was later found to be carrying 150 tons of explosive material, as well as the surface-to-air Patriot missiles and missile propellant charges. "A Trafi check on 26.12.2011 has revealed that the improperly loaded explosive material has been offloaded from the vessel, with the exception of two properly loaded containers, and the detention order has been lifted," the Finnish Transport Safety Authority Trafi said in a statement. However Trafi noted that the ship was still unable to continue on its journey since Finnish customs had placed the Ukrainian captain and first mate under a travel ban pending an investigation into the missiles. Trafi added that customs had also impounded the explosives still on board the ship in two containers. The missiles, discovered Wednesday on the British-registered ship, were bound for the Chinese port city of Shanghai, according to Finnish police.1 Finnish customs are investigating the case as one of illegal export of defence material. A German defence ministry spokesman said the Patriot missiles, produced by US firm Raytheon, came from the German military and were destined for South Korea. He said it was a "legal sale on the basis of an accord between two states at the government level". He said the transaction had received an official export authorisation and was reported to customs authorities. However Finland said Friday it had not received the paperwork required from Germany.

   The head of US Central Command urged greater trust and communications with the Pakistani military on Monday amid a diplomatic crisis after US air strikes killed 24 Pakistani soldiers last month.
General James Mattis made his recommendations after his command, which oversees US military operations across a wide swath of North Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia, released the results of its own investigation into the November 25-26 incident.
A joint US-NATO investigation unveiled last week portrayed a disastrous spate of errors and botched communication in which both sides failed to inform the other about their operational plans or the location of troops.
"The strongest take-away from this incident is the fundamental fact that we must improve border coordination and this requires a foundational level of trust on both sides of the border," Mattis said in a statement.
The deadliest single cross-border attack of the 10-year war in Afghanistan, the strike has plunged the precarious Pakistani-US alliance to its lowest ebb in a decade with both sides in dispute about the precise sequence of events.
Islamabad rejected the earlier US inquiry after the Americans insisted their troops responded only after coming under heavy machine-gun and mortar fire.
It also refused to take part in the probe and instead sought a formal apology from US President Barack Obama, dissatisfied with condolences and expressions of regret from the Americans.
Although the US-NATO probe acknowledged the Americans had relayed "incorrect mapping information" to a Pakistani liaison officer that gave the wrong location for Pakistani troops at border outposts, the CENTCOM report made no mention of discipline of US or NATO personnel.
But Mattis directed NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) commander General John Allen to take a number of corrective actions to improve the now-moribund relationship with Islamabad, including fostering "improved, mutual trust" between forces working in the mostly lawless border areas.
Troops should also "clarify authorities, responsibilities, and standard operating procedures" in the area as well as conduct formal exercises and drills to improve coordination and reduce chances of conflict.
Mattis also called for "full disclosure of all border area facilities and installations" on both sides of the border, with updates using a shared database and map as well as organizing coordination visits.
His comments came as The New York Times reported that the United States is bracing for a limited counterterrorism alliance with Pakistan, as a deterioration in ties complicates the ability to launch attacks against extremists and move supplies into Afghanistan.
"We've closed the chapter on the post-9/11 period," the Times quoted a senior US official as saying. "Pakistan has told us very clearly that they are re-evaluating the entire relationship."
The shift means the United States will be forced to restrict drone strikes, limit the number of its spies and soldiers on the ground and spend more to transport supplies through Pakistan to allied troops in Afghanistan, according to the report. It said US said to Pakistan would also drop sharply.
A Los Angeles Times report over the weekend said the CIA has already suspended drone missile strikes on gatherings of low-ranking militants in Pakistan due to tensions with Islamabad.