KIEV (Bloomberg) — The Dutch-owned ship De Marathon was released by Somali pirates following a $1.3 million ransom payment, almost seven weeks after it was seized in a hijacking that left one of eight Ukrainian crew members dead.

The ransom from the owner was dropped onto the vessel from an aircraft, Mykola Malomuzh, head of Ukraine's external intelligence service, said at a news briefing in Kiev yesterday.

Ukraine participated in negotiations between the pirates and the owner because the vessel's crew includes Ukrainians, he said.

Serhiy Vartenkov died after he was shot when the pirates took the vessel on May 7 in the Gulf of Aden, said Malomuzh. His death was discovered only after the ship's release, the Ukrainian official said.

The owner was identified as Amons and Co. by the Dutch news agency ANP, which said the company declined to comment on the ship's release.

The ship, which was carrying coke used to produce steel, was being escorted to a port by a Dutch Navy vessel after it was released late yesterday.

It was headed toward Djibouti and is expected to dock as early as June 26, Malomuzh said. The Ukrainians then will be flown to Kiev because they are "in difficult physical and emotional condition," he said.