South Korean Delegation in Iran After Oil Tanker Seized

A South Korean delegation arrived in Iran on Thursday amid tensions following the seizure of a South Korean oil tanker and its crew by Iranian forces in sensitive Persian Gulf waters this week.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said Monday it had seized the South Korean-flagged Hankuk Chemi for infringing maritime environmental laws.

The Guards said the vessel was carrying 7,200 tonnes of "oil chemical products" and that the detained crew were from South Korea, Indonesia, Vietnam and Myanmar.

The South Korean delegation, led by the director-general of the foreign ministry's Middle Eastern affairs department, boarded a plane early Thursday and was set to arrive in Tehran via Doha.

"I plan to meet my counterpart at the Iranian foreign ministry and will meet others through various routes if it will help efforts to resolve the issue of the ship's seizure," said Koh Kyung-sok, the chief delegate, before boarding the plane.

But the government spokesman in Tehran gave a different version of the reason for the visit.

In a statement late Thursday Said Khatibzadeh said it was an advance delegation ahead of a visit Sunday by South Korean deputy foreign minister Choi Jong-Kun.

The visit by the South Korean delegation "had been agreed before the seizure" of the Hankuk Chemi oil tanker, "and its main goal is to discuss ways of accessing Iranian funds in Korea", Khatibzadeh said.

Iran's seizure of the tanker came after Tehran had urged Seoul to release billions of dollars of Iranian assets frozen in South Korea under US sanctions. Iran was a key oil supplier to resource-poor South Korea until Washington's rules blocked the purchases.

Seoul has said that South Korea's deputy foreign minister would discuss the frozen assets during his three-day visit to Iran, and the trip would go ahead despite the seizure.

According to Iranian government spokesman Ali Rabiei, Iran has "$7 billion of deposits in South Korea".

The money can neither be transferred nor earn interest, yet Iran is charged fees on it, he has said.

The Hankuk Chemi incident was the first seizure of a major vessel by the Iranian navy in more than a year

In July 2019, the Guards seized the British-flagged oil tanker Stena Impero in the sensitive Strait of Hormuz for allegedly ramming a fishing boat. They released it two months later.

At the time it was widely seen as a tit-for-tat move after authorities in the British overseas territory of Gibraltar detained an Iranian tanker and later released it over US objections.

Tehran denied the two cases were related.

The Guards seized at least six other ships in 2019 over alleged fuel smuggling.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Holds Naval Exercise Near Sensitive Strait of Hormuz

The Iranian navy began a three-day exercise in the Sea of Oman near the strategic Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, deploying an array of warships, drones, and missiles.

One of the exercise's objectives is to devise "tactical offensive and defensive strategies for safeguarding the country's territorial waters and shipping lanes," the military said on its website.

The navy will test-fire surface-to-surface and shore-to-sea cruise missiles and torpedoes, and rocket-launching systems fitted on warships, submarines, aircraft and drones, it added.

Dubbed "Zolfaghar 99", the exercise will be held over two million square kilometres (772,000 square miles) of sea stretching from the northern part of the Indian Ocean to the eastern end of the Strait of Hormuz, the sensitive shipping lane from the Persian Gulf through which a fifth of world oil output passes.

The exercise's spokesman, Commodore Shahram Irani, said that foreign aircraft, especially US drones, had been warned to steer clear of the area.

"We saw focused activities by American UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) to gather information" on the exercise, he told the armed forces' website, adding that the US aircraft had since left the area.

In July, Iran's ideological force, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, blasted a mock-up of a US aircraft carrier with missiles during an exercise near the Strait of Hormuz.

The US Navy condemned those maneuvers as "irresponsible and reckless", and an attempt "to intimidate and coerce".

Tensions between Iran and the United States have soared since President Donald Trump withdrew from a landmark nuclear agreement with Tehran in 2018 and unilaterally reimposed crippling economic sanctions.

Their animosity deepened after a US drone strike killed top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani outside Baghdad airport in January, prompting Iran to retaliate with missile strikes against bases used by the US military in neighboring Iraq.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Says Holding UAE Boat After Fishermen Deaths

Tehran said Thursday it seized an Emirati boat following a Persian Gulf incident in which two Iranian fishermen died, stoking tensions after the UAE said it would establish ties with Israel.

The Iranian foreign ministry said it also summoned the UAE charge d'affaires to protest the maritime incident, which took place on Monday.

UAE coastguard vessels had "opened fire on several Iranian fishing boats... leading to the deaths of two fishermen", a statement by the ministry said.

An "Emirati boat was seized by coast guards of the Islamic Republic of Iran because it was sailing illegally in our waters, and its crew have been arrested," it added.

The official Emirati news agency WAM said eight fishing boats had violated its own territorial waters on Monday, without giving their nationality.

"The coastguard boats attempted to stop the fishing boats but they did not comply with the orders, therefore, rules of engagement were applied", WAM added.

Iran's foreign ministry said the UAE had on Wednesday expressed "its deep regret" and said it would provide compensation.

Iran and the UAE have longstanding economic links and the Emirates are home to a significant Iranian expatriate community.

But tensions have spiked between the two nations following last week's surprise announcement that the UAE has agreed to normalize ties with Israel under a US-brokered deal.

Iran condemned the agreement, with President Hassan Rouhani calling it a "big mistake" and warning "against opening the path of Israel to the region", without elaborating on what that would mean.

Rouhani's remarks were seen as "threats" by the UAE which on Sunday summoned the Iranian charge d'affaires in Abu Dhabi to protest "unacceptable and inflammatory" rhetoric.

The UAE, which downgraded its relations with Iran in 2016 amid fierce rivalry between Tehran and Emirati ally Saudi Arabia, said the remarks "had serious implications for security and stability in the Gulf region.”

Photo: IRNA

Pompeo Lands in Saudi for Talks Focused on Iran

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo landed in Riyadh Wednesday for talks with Saudi leaders focused on countering Tehran, his first visit since a top Iranian general's killing sent regional tensions soaring.

The top US diplomat, whose visit follows his first trip to sub-Saharan Africa, will hold talks with King Salman and his son Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as well as Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan, State Department officials said.

"We'll spend a lot of time talking about the security issues with the threat from the Islamic Republic of Iran in particular," Pompeo told reporters in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa before heading to Riyadh.

Pompeo said the United States was "prepared to talk anytime" to Iran but emphasised that the Iranian regime has "got to fundamentally change their behaviour".

"The pressure campaign continues. It's not just an economic pressure campaign, its diplomatic pressures, isolation through diplomacy as well," he said.

US President Donald Trump, who is closely allied with Saudi Arabia, in 2018 withdrew from a nuclear accord with Iran and imposed sweeping sanctions aimed at reducing Tehran's regional clout.

Pompeo's three-day visit to close ally Saudi Arabia comes in the wake of a US-ordered drone strike that killed Qasem Soleimani, Iran's most powerful general, as he visited Baghdad on January 3

Regional tensions rose following the killing and Iran responded with missile strikes on US forces in Iraq.

US officials blamed Iran for a September attack on Saudi oil installations, although Riyadh has since appeared keen to engage in cautious diplomacy to ease friction.

Pompeo faces a tough balancing act in Saudi Arabia as he said he would also discuss "human rights" during his visit.

The 2018 murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, which sparked global condemnation of the crown prince, has tested relations between the two allies.

After Riyadh, Pompeo will fly to Oman to meet the new sultan, Haitham bin Tariq, on Friday.

Pompeo will offer condolences over the death of his predecessor Qaboos, who was the Arab world's longest-serving leader and served as a go-between for Iran and the United States.

Photo: State Department

Oman Top Diplomat in Iran for Second Time Within Week

Iran's top diplomat Mohammad Javad Zarif hosted his Omani counterpart Yusuf bin Alawi on Sunday for the second time within a week for talks on security in the sensitive Persian Gulf.

Alawi was making the visit to Tehran on the tail end of his trip to the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland.

Zarif and Alawi discussed "bilateral cooperation regarding the Strait of Hormuz and emphasized their governments' will... to guarantee maritime and energy security for all," Iran's foreign ministry said in a statement.

It was their second meeting in the Iranian capital since Tuesday and at least their fourth encounter since late July.

Zarif's withdrawal from Davos was due to "unilateral changes in mutually agreed arrangements on part of WEF", Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said in a tweet.

The spokesman lamented that it was a "missed opportunity for dialogue".

Tensions have soared in the region and especially between Tehran and Washington since a US drone strike killed Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad on January 3.

Iran retaliated five days later by launching a wave of missiles at US troops stationed in Iraq.

Tehran had been on high alert hours later when its air defenses mistakenly shot down a Ukraine International Airlines passenger jet, killing all 176 people on board.

Oman has often acted as a mediator between Iran and its regional foes and also played a key role in facilitating talks involving the United States that lead to the 2016 nuclear deal.

US President Donald Trump's administration withdrew from the agreement in 2018 and began reimposing sanctions on the Islamic republic, which retaliated by scaling back some of its nuclear commitments.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Seizes Ship Smuggling Fuel, Arrests 16 Malaysians

Iran' Revolutionary Guards have seized a ship suspected of fuel-smuggling and arrested 16 Malaysian crew members, state media reported on Monday.

The website of IRIB state television said the Guards confiscated 1.3 million litres of "smuggled fuel" from the unnamed vessel 15 nautical miles from Abu Musa island.

“The ship's 16 crew who are of Malaysian nationality were arrested," the Guards' naval commander for the region, Brigadier General Ali Ozmayi, was quoted as saying.

Abu Musa is one of three islands in the southern Gulf that are under Iranian control but claimed by the United Arab Emirates.

"This is the sixth ship smuggling fuel that (the Guards') navy has confiscated," added Ozmayi.

In September, Iran seized a boat and arrested 12 Filipino crewmen from a suspected fuel-smuggling ring in the Strait of Hormuz, state media reported.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps detained a "foreign tanker" in Gulf waters on July 14 for allegedly smuggling contraband fuel.

Iran also seized another ship on July 31 with seven foreign crew aboard over fuel smuggling, but it never revealed the vessel's identity or the nationality of its crew.

Tensions have been high in the Gulf this year, after the United States stepped up a stated campaign of "maximum pressure" on Iran following its withdrawal from a landmark nuclear deal in 2018.

The escalation saw ships mysteriously attacked, drones downed and oil tankers seized in the Strait of Hormuz—a chokepoint for a third of world's seaborne oil.

And on July 19 the Guards seized the British-flagged oil tanker Stena Impero for allegedly hitting a fishing boat and released it two months later.

Photo: IRNA

China, Russia, Iran to Hold Joint Naval Drills

China, Russia and Iran will hold joint naval drills starting Friday in the Gulf of Oman, Beijing and Tehran said, at a time of heightened tensions since the US withdrew from a landmark nuclear deal with Tehran.

Set to take place from December 27 to 30, the military exercises aim to "deepen exchange and cooperation between the navies of the three countries", Chinese defence ministry spokesman Wu Qian told reporters Thursday.

Wu said the Chinese navy would deploy its Xining guided missile destroyer—nicknamed the "carrier killer" for its array of anti-ship and land attack cruise missiles—in the drills.

But he did not give details on how many personnel or ships would take part overall.

For Iran, the drill's purpose was to bolster "international commerce security in the region" and "fighting terrorism and piracy," said senior armed forces spokesman Brigadier General Aboldazl Shekarchi.

The exercise would "stabilise security" in the region and benefit the world, state news agency IRNA quoted him as saying on Wednesday.

The US reimposed crippling sanctions on Iran in May last year after withdrawing from the international deal aimed at tackling the Islamic Republic's nuclear program, prompting Tehran to hit back with countermeasures.

Remaining parties to the badly weakened 2015 deal include China, Russia, Britain, France and Germany.

China's foreign minister said the exercises were part of "normal military cooperation" between the three countries.

In June, US President Donald Trump authorized a military strike after Iran shot down a US drone, only to call off the retaliation at the last moment.

Photo: IRNA

UAE Says Diplomatic Efforts Needed for Agreement with Iran

A top UAE official on Sunday said Arab Gulf states should take part in "collective diplomacy" to reach an agreement with Iran amid increased tensions between Washington and Tehran.

UAE state minister of foreign affairs Anwar Gargash's statements come following a string of attacks that Washington and its allies blamed on Tehran. Iran denies the allegations.

Animosity between the Islamic republic and the United States has soared since President Donald Trump unilaterally abandoned a landmark 2015 nuclear accord with Iran and reimposed crippling US sanctions.

"When it comes to dealing with Iran, we should not fall for the false choice between war on the one hand or a flawed (nuclear deal) on the other," Gargash said.

"This moment requires a renewed, robust and realistic diplomatic effort to reach a more sustainable agreement," Gargash told a political conference in Abu Dhabi. Garagash said escalation serves no one.

"We strongly believe that there is room for collective diplomacy to succeed," he said, adding that talks with Iran should involve the international community as well as Arab Gulf states. "Gulf states would need to be at the negotiating table," he said. A "meaningful political process" was needed, he said.

"For such a process to work, it is essential that the international community is on the same page, especially the US and the EU, as well as the Arab Gulf states." 

A US-led naval coalition officially launched operations in Bahrain Thursday to protect shipping in the troubled waters of the Persian Gulf after a string of attacks that Washington and its allies blamed on Iran.

The latest attack was on September 14 against two key Saudi oil installation that temporarily knocked out half of the kingdom's production.

Iran denied any involvement in the attacks which were claimed by the Tehran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen. The UAE is part of a Saudi-led coalition battling the Houthis in Yemen.

Photo: Chatham House

Iran Says Cooperation Plan Sent to Persian Gulf Neighbors

Iran said Saturday it has sent Iraq and Arab states of the Persian Gulf the text of its security and cooperation project first unveiled by President Hassan Rouhani at the UN in September.

Rouhani "sent the full text (of the initiative) to the heads" of the Gulf Cooperation Council and Iraq and "asked for their cooperation in processing and implementing it,” the foreign ministry said.

The GCC is a six-nation bloc that groups Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Oman.

Ties have been tense between Iran and GCC members Saudi Arabia and the UAEnited Arab Emirates, both allies of the United States and leading members of a military coalition battling Iran-backed Huthi rebels in Yemen.

In September, Rouhani proposed in a speech at the UN General Assembly a "Coalition for Hope" that would unite all regional countries in a pledge of non-aggression and non-interference in each others' affairs.

It came after a string of mysterious attacks on oil tankers in the Persian Gulf and Saudi oil installations, which the United States blamed on Tehran. Iran denied any involvement in the attacks.

"The security of the region shall be provided when American troops pull out," Rouhani said at the General Assembly.

"In the event of an incident, you and we shall not remain alone. We are neighbors with each other and not with the United States," he added.

Tensions between Tehran and Washington have escalated sharply since US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew last year from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.

He has since reimposed unilateral sanctions as part of its "maximum pressure" campaign.

The arch-foes came to the brink of a military confrontation in June when Iran downed a US drone and Trump ordered retaliatory strikes before canceling them at the last minute.

Photo: IRNA

Pakistan PM in Tehran on Mission to 'Facilitate' Iran-Saudi Talks

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan visited Iran on Sunday on a mission to act as a "facilitator" between Tehran and Riyadh and try to defuse rising tensions in the Persian Gulf.

Khan landed in Tehran around midday and met with President Hassan Rouhani at the presidential palace.

He was also scheduled to hold talks with Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, before traveling to Riyadh on Tuesday.

"The reason for this trip is that we do not want a conflict between Saudi Arabia and Iran," Khan told reporters as he stood alongside Rouhani.

"Whatever it takes we must never allow this conflict to take place, because we know, Mr. President, that there is a vested interest that wants this to take place," he told Rouhani.

Noting that it was a "complex" issue that can be resolved through talks, Khan warned that any conflict between Iran and Saudi Arabia would "cause poverty in the world".

Pakistan has strong relations with Saudi Arabia, with more than 2.5 million of its nationals living and working in the kingdom, but it also maintains good relations with Iran and represents Tehran's consular interests in the United States.

This is Khan's second visit this year to Iran, which shares a border of about 1,000 kilometres (620 miles) with Pakistan.

Emphasising that the visits to Tehran and Riyadh were Pakistan's "initiative", Khan said he was also approached by US President Donald Trump to "facilitate some sort of dialogue between Iran and the United States".

Tehran and Washington have been at loggerheads since the US withdrew from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal in May last year and reimposed sanctions on the Islamic republic.

Rouhani repeated Iran's official line that the United States must return to the deal and lift sanctions before any talks can take place.

"Any goodwill gesture and good words will be reciprocated with a goodwill gesture and good words," he said.

Tanker Attacks

Rouhani said he had expressed Iran's concern about Gulf security and especially a "missile attack" Friday on an Iranian vessel off the Saudi coast.

"We expressed our concerns to the prime minister about the incidents happening to oil tankers, especially the Iranian oil tanker in the Red Sea on Friday," he said.

Tehran says the Iranian-flagged Sabiti tanker was hit by two separate explosions off the Saudi port of Jeddah, making it the first Iranian vessel targeted since a spate of attacks in the Gulf that Washington has blamed on Tehran.

Rouhani said he had presented Khan with evidence from the incident and that investigations were ongoing.

"If a country thinks that it can cause insecurity in the region and not receive a proper response, it is mistaken," Rouhani said, without elaborating.

There has been a series of still-unexplained attacks on shipping in and around the vital seaway involving Iran and Western powers, as well as drone attacks on Saudi oil installations.

Washington has accused Tehran of attacking the vessels with mines and of being behind the drone assault, something it strongly denies.

Khan met both Rouhani and Trump at the United Nations General Assembly last month, shortly after he visited Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Saudi Arabia.

The Pakistan premier said he was "very encouraged" by talking to Rouhani and will go to Saudi Arabia "in a very positive frame of mind", hoping the two countries can "iron out their differences."

Photo: IRNA

Iran FM Pitches Persian Gulf Security Plan to Neighbors

Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif pitched the Islamic Republic's Persian Gulf security plan to neighboring nations on Thursday, saying regional security cannot be provided by foreign powers.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani announced the plan at the UN General Assembly last month, calling on Gulf nations including arch-rival Saudi Arabia to join it but without giving details.

In an article published on Thursday in Arabic by Kuwait's Al Rai daily, Zarif said that the plan, named Hormuz Peace Endeavor, offered the chance of "expansive security" and cooperation between Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain.

Cooperation could include areas such as a regional non-aggression pact, combatting terrorism, cybersecurity, energy and freedom of navigation, Zarif said.

"In order to save the region from the edge of ruin, we feel the necessity of realising a new discourse more than ever," he wrote in the article, a translation of which was provided by his ministry.

"The fate of the people and nations of the Persian Gulf is entwined ... either everyone benefits from security in the region or everyone will be deprived of it," Zarif said.

Tensions have risen in the Gulf since last year when US President Donald Trump unilaterally abandoned a 2015 nuclear deal between major powers and Iran and began reimposing crippling sanctions.

They flared again this May when Iran began reducing its own commitments under the deal and the US deployed military assets to the region. Since then, ships have been attacked, drones downed and oil tankers seized.

In June, Trump called off air strikes against Iran at the last minute after the Islamic republic's forces shot down a US drone.

Last month, twin attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure, which knocked out half the kingdom's production, drew accusations of blame against Iran not only from the US but also from its European allies.

Tehran has denied any involvement in the attacks, which were claimed by Iran-backed rebels fighting a Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.

The US has since formed a coalition with its allies Australia, Bahrain, Britain, Saudi Arabia and the UAE to escort commercial shipping in the Gulf.

Tehran has warned that the planned US-led International Maritime Security Construct will only increase instability.

Photo: IRNA

Iran on Track to Open New Oil Terminal Outside Persian Gulf

Iran said on Monday that it is on track to create a new oil terminal on the Sea of Oman that would open a new export route for its crude and allow tankers to bypass the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

The National Iranian Oil Company signed a contract worth around $52 million Monday with three local companies to supply 50 pumps for the pipeline project, according to the Iranian oil ministry's Shana website.

The pipeline will run from Bushehr province on the Gulf to Bandar-e-Jask on the Sea of Oman, on the other side of the Strait of Hormuz.

"Construction of the Goreh-Jask pipeline and the crude oil export terminal at Jask Port are among the priority plans," Shana reported.

The approximately 1,000-kilometre (620-mile) pipeline will bring oil from Goreh in Bushehr to Jask, making it "strategically important as the country's second-largest crude oil export terminal," Shana reported.

According to Tehran's official IRNA news agency, Jask will export its first crude within 18 months.

In September 2018, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani announced "a major part" of Iran's exports would be shifted to Jask from the Kharg Island terminal -- deep in the Gulf.

He said the project would be completed by the end of his term in summer 2021.

To reach the oil terminal on Kharg Island, tankers must pass the chokepoint Strait of Hormuz—through which most Persian Gulf oil passes—slowing deliveries by several days.

Iran has in the past repeatedly threatened to block the strait—which is used by its Gulf rivals including Saudi Arabia—when faced with sanctions on its oil exports and possible military action by the US.

Washington and Tehran came close to armed conflict in June following a military escalation in the Gulf.

Tension has grown since May 2018 when the United States withdrew from a landmark 2015 nuclear deal with Iran and reimposed sanctions aimed at stopping it from exporting oil.

Washington, Riyadh, Berlin, London and Paris blamed Iran for attacks that damaged the Saudi oil sector on September 14.

Photo: IRNA

Seized Oil Tanker Sets Sail: Iran Authorities

The British-flagged oil tanker Stena Impero, which had been held off the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas for more than two months, set sail Friday, an Iranian shipping organization said.

The ship's seizure was widely seen as a tit-for-tat move after authorities in the British overseas territory of Gibraltar detained an Iranian tanker on suspicion it was shipping oil to Syria in breach of EU sanctions.

Tehran repeatedly denied the cases were related but a Gibraltar last month ordered the Iranian tanker's release despite an 11th-hour US legal bid to keep it in detention.

"The Stena Impero started sailing from the mooring towards the Persian Gulf's international waters as of 9:00 am (0530 GMT) today," Hormozgan province's maritime organisation said on its website.

"Despite the vessel's clearance, its legal case is still open in Iran's courts," it added.

The tanker's captain and crew have also "given a written, official statement that they have no claims."

Iran's Revolutionary Guards seized the tanker in the Strait of Hormuz on July 19 after surrounding the vessel with attack boats and rappelling onto its deck.

It was impounded off the port of Bandar Abbas for allegedly failing to respond to distress calls and turning off its transponder after hitting a fishing boat.

Seven of its 23 crew members were released on September 4.

Photo: Fleetmon

Iran Says Seized British-Flagged Tanker Free to Leave

Iran's government spokesman Ali Rabiei said on Monday that a British-flagged oil tanker is "free" to leave more than two months after it was seized in the Persian Gulf.

"The legal process has finished and based on that the conditions for letting the oil tanker go free have been fulfilled and the oil tanker can move," Rabiei told a news conference.

He did not specify when the Swedish-owned vessel would be allowed to set sail.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps surrounded the Stena Impero with attack boats before rappelling onto the deck of the tanker in the Strait of Hormuz on July 19.

The vessel was impounded at Iran's Bandar Abbas port for allegedly failing to respond to distress calls and turning off its transponder after hitting a fishing boat.

Stena Bulk, the company that owns the tanker, said on Sunday that it expected the vessel to be released soon, but expressed caution about the situation.

"We understand that the political decision has been taken to release the ship," Stena Bulk's chief executive Erik Hanell told Swedish television station SVT.

"We hope it will be able to leave in a few hours, but we don't want to take anything for granted. We want to make sure the ship sails out of Iranian territorial waters," he said.

The ship's seizure came hours after a court in the British overseas territory of Gibraltar said it was extending the detention of the Grace 1, an Iranian oil tanker later renamed the Adrian Darya 1.

At the time, Tehran denied the seizure of the Stena Impero was a tit-for-tat move.

A Gibraltar court ordered the Iranian tanker's release on August 15 despite an 11th-hour US legal bid to keep it in detention.

Photo: Mizan News Agency

Iran Accuses Foreign Forces of Raising Persian Gulf 'Insecurity'

By Amir Havasi

President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday denounced the presence of foreign forces in the Persian Gulf and said Iran will present a peace plan, after its arch-foe Washington ordered reinforcements to the tense region.

"Foreign forces can cause problems and insecurity for our people and for our region," Rouhani said before a military parade commemorating the Iran-Iraq war.

Rouhani also said Iran would present a peace plan to the United Nations within days.

"In this sensitive and important historical moment, we announce to our neighbours that we extend the hand of friendship and brotherhood to them," he said.

Rouhani and top military brass saluted as row after row of soldiers marched past them in tight formation, followed by an array of homegrown military hardware.

The parade showcased tanks, armoured vehicles, drones and missiles—including the Khorramshahr, said to have a range of 2,000 kilometres (more than 1,200 miles).

Tensions between Iran and the US and its allies have threatened to boil over since May last year when President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from a 2015 nuclear deal and later began reimposing sanctions.

The tensions escalated in the wake of devastating September 14 attacks on Saudi oil installations that Washington and Riyadh have, to varying degrees, blamed on Tehran.

Following the attacks, which triggered a spike in global oil prices, Trump initially raised the possibility of a military response, saying the US was "locked and loaded".

Washington later expanded its long list of sanctions against Tehran, targeting its central bank, but Trump indicated he did not plan military action.

On Friday, Defence Secretary Mark Esper said the US was sending reinforcements to Saudi Arabia at "the kingdom's request", but noted they would be "defensive in nature".

'Stay Away'

Rouhani called on the foreign powers to "stay away" from the Gulf.

"If they're sincere, then they should not make our region the site of an arms race," he said.

"Your presence has always brought pain and misery... The farther you keep yourselves from our region and our nations, the more security there will be," he added.

"Our logic is the logic of a Persian Gulf whose security comes from within."

The annual military parade marks the start of the week commemorating Iran's 1980-1988 war with Iraq.

Among the new weaponry debuting at Sunday's parade was an upgraded warhead for the Khorramshahr ballistic missile, the Kaman 12 drone with a range of 1,000 kilometres and a mobile radar system capable of detecting landmines, local media reported.

Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted that Rouhani would announce details of the "Hormuz Peace Endeavour" at the UN General Assembly.

Rouhani is to travel to New York on Monday, a day before general debate kicks off at the UN gathering.

Tensions have flared in the Gulf since May, when Iran began reducing its commitments to the nuclear deal and the US said it was sending forces to waters near the Islamic republic in response to "indications of a credible threat".

The US deployed an aircraft carrier strike group and a bomber task force to the sensitive waterways, before sending B-52 bombers, an amphibious assault ship and a Patriot missile battery.

Following the deployments, commercial ships were mysteriously attacked, drones downed and oil tankers seized in Gulf waters.

'Act of War'

Trump in June authorised a military strike after Iran shot down a US drone, only to call off the retaliation at the last moment.

The crisis deepened with the September 14 attacks on Saudi energy giant Aramco's Abqaiq processing plant and Khurais oilfield which halved the kingdom's crude output.

Yemen's Iran-backed Huthi rebels claimed responsibility, but the US says attacks involved cruise missiles from Iran and amounted to "an act of war".

Saudi Arabia, which has been bogged down in a five-year war in Yemen, has warned of "appropriate measures" once the source of the strikes is confirmed by a UN investigation.

The UN has welcomed a Huthi plan for a cessation of hostilities announced Friday, but Saudi Arabia was sceptical.

After months of rising tensions, Iran's semi-official news agency ISNA said Sunday a Swedish-owned oil tanker detained two months ago by Iranian forces would be released "soon".

But "the case regarding its legal violations is still open with Iran's judicial authorities," it quoted the head of the local maritime organization as saying.

Photo: IRNA

Pompeo Favors 'Peaceful Resolution' to Crisis After Saudi Attack

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo Thursday said he preferred a “peaceful resolution” to a crisis sparked by attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure, as Iran warned against “all-out war.”

Pompeo has blamed Iran for the weekend assault on two facilities which wiped out half of Saudi oil production, dismissing its denials and condemning the “act of war.”

The rhetoric has raised the risk of an unpredictable escalation in the tinderbox region where Saudi Arabia and Iran are locked in a decades-old struggle for dominance.

Visiting the United Arab Emirates, Pompeo however said his country would prefer a “peaceful” solution to the crisis.

“We’d like a peaceful resolution,” he said.

“I hope the Islamic Republic of Iran sees it the same way,” he told reporters after talks with the leaders of the United Arab Emirates.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif earlier warned any US or Saudi military strike on Iran could cause “all-out war.”

“We don’t want war, we don’t want to engage in a military confrontation,” he told CNN in an interview aire Thursday.

“But we won’t blink to defend our territory.”

Pompeo arrived in Abu Dhabi from the Saudi city of Jeddah, where late Wednesday he met Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom’s de-facto ruler who has said the assault poses a “real test” of global will.

The two sides agreed “the Iranian regime must be held accountable for its continued aggressive, reckless, and threatening behaviour,” State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said.

The “unacceptable and unprecedented attack… not only threatened Saudi Arabian national security, but also endangered the lives of all the American citizens living and working in Saudi Arabia,” she added.

‘Glass Towers’

Saudi officials Wednesday unveiled what they said were fragments of 25 drones and cruise missiles fired Saturday at the facilities in the country’s east, engulfing them in flames.

“The attack was launched from the north and unquestionably sponsored by Iran,” defence ministry spokesman Turki al-Maliki said, but did not say whether Saudi officials believed Iran would ultimately be found to be the culprit.

Tehran-linked Huthi rebels in Saudi Arabia’s southern neighbor Yemen have claimed responsibility, but both Washington and Riyadh have ruled that out, saying it was beyond their capabilities.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian also said the Huthi claim “lacks credibility”.

The Huthis have hit dozens of targets in Saudi Arabia, and their rapidly advancing arsenal has exposed the vulnerability of the kingdom despite its vast military spending.

Huthi military spokesman Brigadier Yahya Saree said Saturday’s assault on the two facilities was launched from three locations inside Yemen, using advanced drones with long-range capabilities.

He also threatened the United Arab Emirates, a key member of the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Huthis, saying it was ready to attack dozens of targets including the skyscraper-filled cities of Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

“If you want peace and security for your facilities, and towers made of glass that cannot withstand one drone, then leave Yemen alone,” he said.

‘List of Iran Targets’ ‘

US military planners weighing retaliation have reportedly forwarded a list of Iranian targets including the Abadan oil refinery, one of the world’s largest, or Khark Island, the country’s biggest oil export facility, the New York Times said.

Other potential targets include missile launch sites and other assets of the elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and bases in the southwest where unusual activity suggests they had a role in the strikes.

“Any strikes against Iran would almost certainly be carried out by volleys of cruise missiles from Navy vessels. Strike aircraft would be aloft to carry out attacks if Iranian retaliated against the first wave,” the newspaper said.

Cinzia Bianco, a Middle East analyst at the European Council on Foreign Relations, said the incident could “trigger an out-of-control chain of escalatory events.”

“Inside Saudi Arabia, there is uncertainty over the most appropriate course of action,” she told AFP.

“However the dominant thinking there points to the US targeting critical infrastructure in Iran as to minimise or exclude any human cost.”

Late Wednesday, CBS News cited an unnamed US official as saying Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei approved the attack, on condition it be carried out in a way to deny Iranian involvement.

US officials quoted said the most damning evidence against Iran was unreleased satellite photos showing Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps making preparations for the attack at its Ahvaz airbase.

But the commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, Major General Hossein Salami, said Thursday his country was “so powerful that they are forced to falsely accuse us to be behind any incident”.

An international inquiry is under way, with the the United Nations saying Thursday experts had arrived in the kingdom and begun their mission “at the invitation of the Saudi authorities”.

Trump, who has already re-imposed sanctions that have crippled Iran’s economy, promised on Wednesday to “substantially increase” the measures, winning quick praise from Riyadh.

Zarif, himself under US sanctions since July 31, described the measures as “illegal” and “inhuman” and designed to hurt ordinary citizens.

Photo: State Department

Pompeo Talks Maritime Security, Iran With Saudi Crown Prince

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo discussed maritime security, Iran and Yemen with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in a phone call on Wednesday.

"The secretary discussed heightened tensions in the region and the need for stronger maritime security in order to promote freedom of navigation," State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said in a statement.

Iran has seized three tanker ships in strategic Gulf waters in a month, and the United States has accused it of carrying out multiple attacks on ships in the region.

The U.S. has been struggling to piece together an international coalition to protect cargo ships travelling through the Gulf, with allies concerned about being dragged into conflict with Iran.

Ortagus also said that the top U.S. diplomat and the crown prince "discussed other bilateral and regional developments, including countering the Iranian regime's destabilizing activities."

Tensions between Washington and Tehran -- Saudi Arabia's arch foe -- have soared since U.S. President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of a nuclear deal with Iran last year and imposed punishing sanctions.

Twelve months on from the U.S. withdrawal, Iran responded by suspending some of its commitments under the nuclear deal.

Iran meanwhile shot down an American drone in June, with Trump saying he called off retaliatory air strikes at the last minute, and the United States says it has since downed one and possibly two of Tehran's unmanned aircraft, which the Islamic republic has denied.

On Yemen, "the secretary and the crown prince reaffirmed their strong support for UN Special Envoy Martin Griffiths' efforts to advance the political process," Ortagus said.

Saudi Arabia is locked in a bloody war in the country against the Iran-backed Huthis, a conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people, many of them civilians, relief agencies say.

Trump vetoed congressional resolutions last month that would have blocked arms sales to the kingdom that critics fear would aggravate the devastating Yemen war, which the UN said has triggered the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

Photo: Wikicommons

Trump Sees Chance With Boris Johnson to Lure UK on Iran, Huawei

By David Wainer

As Boris Johnson hurtles toward a no-deal Brexit that could leave the U.K. diplomatically adrift and economically vulnerable, President Donald Trump is looking to seize an opportunity to lure the country away from Europe on some of his top foreign policy priorities: Iran and Huawei.

Yet with Johnson focused on negotiating a breakup with the European Union—and perhaps a snap election at home—the White House may have to be patient in its hopes that the U.K.’s leadership change will bring closer alignment on issues including sanctioning Iran’s nuclear program and blocking Huawei Technologies Co. equipment from new 5G mobile networks.

Trump is pressing his case regardless. He and Johnson spoke by phone last week about “areas of further cooperation,” including trade, 5G technology and global security, according to a White House statement. With Johnson—a “good man” Trump has long praised for wanting to leave the EU—now at 10 Downing Street, the U.S. sees Johnson’s need for an eventual bilateral trade deal with America as leverage to peel Britain away from Europe on key issues.

In a first bid to serve as a bridge between the White House and European allies, the U.K. announced on Monday that it will lead “an international mission to restore safe passage” in the Persian Gulf, working with partners including the U.S. Navy. The move offers a face-saving opportunity for countries that spurned a U.S.-led initiative because they blame Trump for quitting the 2015 nuclear accord with Iran.

A senior White House official said the U.S. expects cooperation will grow more robust with the new government, as the two countries work together extensively on security issues including North Korea. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo predicted the nations that long have boasted of their “special relationship” will grow even closer.

“I think we’ll find that there’s a very good working relationship there,” Pompeo said in a Bloomberg TV interview last month. “When the prime minister gets his feet on the ground, I’m looking forward to having a chance to chat with him and his foreign secretary so that we can deliver on behalf of these two important democracies.”

New Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab will be in Washington this week, and his language will be mined for clues on where the U.K. is headed.

Working in the U.S.’s favor is Johnson’s need to seal a trade deal with Washington after the U.K.’s departure from the EU, expected Oct. 31. To help smooth that process, Johnson could take more symbolic steps to spurn Europe and sidle up to Trump.

Key Question: Iran

Johnson’s proposal on Gulf maritime security was welcomed by the U.S. But that doesn’t mean he’s ready to follow Trump in quitting the multinational nuclear agreement the American president has called the “worst deal ever.” In announcing the maritime mission, Raab, the foreign minister, said, “We remain committed to working with Iran and our international partners to de-escalate the situation and maintain the nuclear deal.”

Johnson has repeatedly signaled that he’s a strong supporter of the nuclear deal, which the U.K. and other participating nations have struggled to maintain in the face of renewed U.S. sanctions against Iran. As British foreign minister in 2018, when Trump pulled out of the agreement, Johnson said talks with Tehran culminating in a new accord were difficult to imagine.

“One of the big questions is whether he will break with European unity on Iran,” said Richard Nephew, a Columbia University scholar who was part of the U.S. team that negotiated the nuclear accord. “He needs Trump on his side, at the very least promising a favorable trade deal, as he takes the U.K. down the Brexit route.”

Germany’s Worries

In Germany, there’s concern that Johnson and Trump will try to build a new version of the “special relationship,” according to a coalition official in Berlin.

The Germans see Johnson’s intention to seek a trade deal with the U.S. at a time when the EU is already negotiating such a pact as further evidence of a breach, said the official, who asked not to identified discussing Britain’s political direction. French President Emmanuel Macron’s aides also routinely say that they see the British as potential trouble-makers on trade.

Despite receiving invitations, Johnson hasn’t traveled to the major European capitals. By contrast, his predecessor went to Berlin within days of coming to power.

In the most telling example of friction between London and its European partners, the U.K. undercut a French-led initiative to find a common candidate to lead the International Monetary Fund. Mere hours before EU governments were to begin voting on a candidate, the U.K. suddenly objected to the process and said it wouldn’t take part in offering a potential nominee or in the voting, according to a source familiar with the interaction.

All this is fertile ground for the White House to act to pull the U.K. away, and the promise of a free-trade deal is the biggest carrot of all for a prime minister determined to bring about Brexit and deliver on its promised benefits. That’s why Johnson’s meeting with Trump at the Group of Seven summit in France this month will be the most-watched bilateral of them all for the Europeans.

Picking an Envoy

Johnson will also have a chance to appoint a new ambassador to Washington because Kim Darroch abruptly resigned last month after the leak of internal messages in which he criticized the Trump administration as “clumsy and inept.”

Johnson’s failure to defend Darroch in a televised campaign debate brought criticism from a Foreign Office official who said he’d thrown the ambassador “under a bus.”

Trump had failed to win British support on a number of issues under former Prime Minister Theresa May. A U.K. government official said the U.S. relationship can only improve in light of May’s lack of rapport with Trump. The official predicted a strengthening of relations, drawing on new opportunities on trade and other issues, but not a total reset of ties.

Even under Johnson, breaking the U.K. away from the European Union on foreign policy will be tough, according to three senior European diplomats with knowledge of the new British government. Any moves to cozy up to Trump may be more symbolic than substantive, particularly because Johnson has to worry about maintaining a single-seat majority in the House of Commons.

‘Political Opportunists’

“What Trump and Johnson have in common is they are political opportunists,” said Charles Kupchan, former senior director for European Affairs at the National Security Council in the Obama administration. “They believe in America First, Britain First. They’re out for themselves and I don’t think either Trump or Johnson will be making sacrifices to help each other.”

And while the U.K. is still reviewing its position on Huawei, which the U.S. sees as a stalking horse for Chinese spying and wants banned from allied nations, all four U.K. carriers are already building their 5G networks using equipment from Huawei. BT Group Plc’s EE and Vodafone Group Plc have even gone live with their Huawei-supported 5G. Delaying or freezing that deployment would be an additional hit to an increasingly fragile British economy.

Showman Politics

Trump may have to be patient, knowing the U.K. leader has other priorities. Unlike May, who Trump publicly criticized on multiple occasions, the president sees in Johnson’s rise a vindication of his own style of showman politics.

“Trump from the get-go has been a supporter of getting on with Brexit and he likes populist and right-wing leaders, wherever they may be,” said Kupchan, the former Obama administration official who’s now a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.

But unlike Trump, Johnson has less room for error on the world stage and is therefore expected to be less volatile. While Trump can insult allies and foes, tear up agreements, and still command any leader’s attention, the U.K. is a diminishing power, said Andreas Krieg, who teaches defense studies at King’s College London.

“He talks about building a Global Britain but he know there’s no capacity to build a global power,” said Krieg. “He understands Britain is not America.”

Photo: Wikicommons

UK Joins US in Persian Gulf Mission After Iran Taunts

By Joe Jackson and Amir Havasi

Britain said Monday it will join forces with the United States to protect merchant vessels in the Persian Gulf amid heightened tensions with Iran, after Tehran taunted Washington that its allies were too "ashamed" to join the mission.

Britain's decision to form the joint maritime taskforce with the United States marks a departure in policy under new Prime Minister Boris Johnson, after efforts under his predecessor Theresa May to form a European-led grouping.

It follows a spate of incidents -- including the seizure of ships -- between Iran and Western powers, in particular Britain and the US, centred on the vital Strait of Hormuz thoroughfare.

"The UK is determined to ensure her shipping is protected from unlawful threats, and for that reason we have today joined the new maritime security mission in the Gulf," Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said in a statement.

The announcement from Britain's defence ministry did not detail which, if any, other countries would be joining the new naval coalition.

Britain was also at pains to stress that it had not changed its broader policy towards Tehran.

"We remain committed to working with Iran and our international partners to de-escalate the situation and maintain the nuclear deal," Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said.

The announcement came hours after Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Washington was increasingly isolated in its hardline stance against Tehran and its allies were too "ashamed" to join its forces in the Gulf.

He also dismissed US calls for talks as a sham, confirming he had turned down an offer to meet President Donald Trump last month despite the threat of US sanctions against him.

"Today the United States is alone in the world and cannot create a coalition," he said.

"Friendly countries are too ashamed of being in a coalition with them," Zarif told a news conference, saying they had "brought this situation upon themselves, with law-breaking, by creating tensions and crises."

Germany 'Not in Favor’

Tehran and Washington have been locked in a battle of nerves since last year when Trump withdrew the US from a landmark 2015 deal placing curbs on Iran's nuclear programme and began reimposing sanctions.

Tensions have spiked since the Trump administration began stepping up a campaign of "maximum pressure" against Iran.

Drones have been downed and tankers seized by Iranian authorities or mysteriously attacked in Gulf waters, while Britain has detained an Iranian tanker off Gibraltar.

At the height of the crisis, Trump called off air strikes against Iran at the last minute in June after the Islamic republic's forces shot down a US drone.

Iran said on Sunday its forces had seized a "foreign" tanker carrying smuggled fuel in what would be the third such seizure in less than a month in Persian Gulf waters—a conduit for much of the world's crude oil.

Last month the Guards said they had impounded the Panama-flagged MT Riah for alleged fuel smuggling as well as the British-flagged Stena Impero for breaking "international maritime rules".

In response to such incidents, the US has been seeking to form a coalition—dubbed Operation Sentinel—to guarantee freedom of navigation in the Persian Gulf.

Last month Britain, while still led by former prime minister May, proposed a European-led maritime protection force.

But both plans struggled to find partners, with European countries believed to be reluctant to be dragged into a conflict.

Germany said Monday it was currently "not in favour" of joining an American-led coalition.

'Left the Table'

Meanwhile the US continues to target Iran economically, while holding out the prospect of possible talks.

It imposed sanctions against Zarif on Wednesday—under the same sanctions already applied to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei—targeting any assets he has in America and squeezing his ability to travel.

Meanwhile however the New Yorker magazine reported that Senator Rand Paul had met Zarif in the US on July 15 and had Trump's blessing when he invited the Iranian minister to go to the White House.

Zarif dismissed as disingenuous US "claims" it wants dialogue.

"They were the ones who left the table... Who do they want to negotiate with?" he said.

But Zarif did not rule out talks in the future, saying: "Even in times of war negotiations will exist."

Photo: CENTCOM

Iran Seizes Small Oil Tanker Suspected of Smuggling Fuel

By Shaji Mathew and Arsalan Shahla

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards seized a foreign oil tanker in the Persian Gulf on July 31, compounding concerns about the safety of shipping in a region crucial to oil exports.

The vessel—the third foreign ship seized by the guards in the Gulf since July 14—is suspected of smuggling a large volume of fuel, the Guards said on their Sepah News portal, without giving any details about the flag or nationality of the ship or its operator.

The ship was carrying 700,000 liters (4,403 barrels) of smuggled fuel when it was seized near Farsi Island in the western part of the Gulf, off Iran’s southwestern coast, Sepah News reported. That’s about 400 miles (640 kilometers) from the Strait of Hormuz, which has been at the center of Iran’s standoff with the West in recent weeks. Iran’s state-run Press TV reported that the seized ship is an Iraqi tanker that was delivering the fuel to some Arab countries in the Persian Gulf.

The allegedly smuggled volume is a minuscule amount in oil terms: the largest supertankers are capable of hauling cargoes of 2 million barrels.

Even so, the impounding of the ship could escalate the tensions that have flared in the region’s waters as Iran resists U.S. sanctions that are crippling its all-important oil exports and hits back after one of its ships was seized July 4 near Gibraltar. Iran grabbed a British tanker, the Stena Impero, in Hormuz two weeks later and continues to hold it.

The passage at the mouth of the Persian Gulf accounts for about a third of the world’s seaborne oil flows. To reduce the risks of navigating the waterway, the Royal Navy has started to escort British ships, and a plan for a European naval mission is taking shape.

The U.S. has embarked on a parallel operation that the Europeans are wary of joining for fear of being identified with President Donald Trump’s “maximum pressure campaign” against Iran and its economy. In response to that campaign, Iran has abandoned restrictions on uranium enrichment, downed a U.S. drone and test-fired a ballistic missile. It’s also been accused of carrying out a number of attacks on tankers near Hormuz.

Cargo Confiscated

According to Sepah News, the ship seized last week had loaded fuel from other vessels before it was impounded. It was taken to Bushehr port on Iran’s southwest coast, and its cargo was confiscated and handed over to the National Oil Distribution Company of Iran. All seven foreign crew members were arrested.

The announcement of the ship’s capture coincides with a joint meeting between the Iranian and Qatari coast guards in Tehran aimed at improving and developing maritime cooperation between the Gulf neighbors, state-run Islamic Republic News Agency reported earlier Sunday. That gathering follows a rare meeting between the coast guards of Iran and the U.A.E. last week.

Photo: Tasnim