The cargo ship at the heart of an international piracy mystery will arrive in Malta on Thursday, Russia's RIA-Novosti state news agency reported today, citing a military-diplomatic source.

The Arctic Sea -- which was allegedly seized by pirates in July in a bizarre incident that sparked speculation about a secret cargo -- has been in limbo since being recaptured by Russian warships in August.

Russian officials had initially said it would be taken to the Russian port of Novorossiisk, then the Spanish port of Las Palmas, but the ship remained at sea amid disagreements among the various governments involved and its owners.

"After standing at anchor for nearly two weeks in the Mediterranean Sea near eastern Gibraltar, the Arctic Sea has begun moving toward Malta accompanied by ships of the Black Sea Fleet," the source told RIA-Novosti.

"The arrival in the Maltese port of Valletta is expected on October 29," the source said, adding that Russian officials would then take part in negotiations on the ship's handover.

Solchart, the Helsinki-based company that owns the Arctic Sea, could not immediately be reached for comment.

The Maltese-flagged, Russian-crewed vessel was in one of Europe's busiest shipping lanes when, according to investigators, it was hijacked by a band of pirates posing as police.

Officially the ship was carrying a load of timber from Finland to Algeria, but the boldness of the hijacking and the elaborate effort to recapture it prompted speculation that it may have held a secret cargo.

Russia has denied reports that it was carrying weapons to Iran and said nothing but timber was found on board when it was recaptured.

Eight suspects -- including Russians, Estonians and Latvians -- have been accused of hijacking the Arctic Sea and are now awaiting trial in Moscow on charges of piracy and kidnapping. They have maintained their innocence.

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