New Zealand's government has paid Samoa 10 million Samoan Tala (NZD 6 million; £2.6 million) after one of its naval ships crashed into a reef in Samoan waters before catching fire and sinking last year.
HMNZS Manawanui started leaking oil into the ocean after it sunk, with reports of sea turtles dying and slicks appearing on nearby Samoan beaches.
New Zealand's Foreign Minister Winston Peters said the payment had been made at Samoa's request.
HMNZS Manawanui was the first ship New Zealand lost at sea since World War Two. It was one of nine ships in the country's small naval fleet and had been surveying an area of sea floor that had not been mapped in decades when it ran aground.
All 75 people aboard were successfully rescued from the vessel as it began listing off the coast of the Samoan island of Upolu exactly a year ago.
Despite being seen billowing smoke as it went down, Samoan officials later said that not all its fuel had burnt off and the ship had leaked oil from various locations, prompting concerns about local marine wildlife.
Since the ship's grounding, HMNZS Manawanui has remained on the reef, but diesel fuel, oil, and other pollutants have been removed from the ship, while a New Zealand naval team was tasked with removing debris.
Peters stated that the New Zealand government is continuing to work with Samoa on decisions related to the ship and its future, acknowledging the impact the sinking has had on local communities.
He emphasized that minimizing any possible environmental impacts and supporting the response were top priorities.
An inquiry into the incident found that a series of human errors, including a failure to disengage the ship's autopilot, was the root cause of the crash. Social media users had initially trolled the ship's female captain, but New Zealand's defense minister condemned such behavior.
