Dubai (Web Desk) – Iranian forces seized two Greek tankers in the Gulf on Friday, shortly after Tehran warned it would take” punitive action” against Athens over the confiscation of Iranian canvas by the United States from a tanker held off the Greek seacoast.
” The Revolutionary Guards Navy moment seized two Greek tankers for violations in Gulf waters,” said a Guards statement, quoted by Iranian state news agency IRNA. It gave no farther details and didn’t say what the alleged violations were.
Greece’s foreign ministry said an Iranian cortege copter landed on Greek flagged vessel Delta Poseidon, which was sailing in transnational waters, 22 navigational country miles from the Iranian reinforcement, and took the crew hostage, among them two Greek citizens.
It said a analogous incident took place on another Greek- flagged vessel near Iran, without naming the boat, adding both conduct violated transnational law and Greece had informed its abettors, as well as complained to Iran’s minister in Athens.
Greece- grounded Delta Tankers, which operates the Delta Poseidon, couldn’t be incontinently reached for comment.
Greek authorities last month impounded the Iranian- flagged Pegas, with 19 Russian crew members on board, near the seacoast of the southern islet of Evia due to European Union warrants.
The United States latterly sequestered the Iranian canvas weight held onboard and plans to shoot it to the United States on another vessel, Reuters reported on Thursday.
The Pegas was latterly released, but the seizure inflamed pressures at a delicate time, with Iran and world powers seeking to revive a nuclear deal that Washington abandoned under former President Donald Trump in favour of returning warrants on Iran.
Before on Friday, Nour News, which is combined to an Iranian state security body, said on Twitter” Following the seizure of an Iranian tanker by the Greek government and the transfer of its canvas to the Americans,#Iran has decided to take corrective action against#Greece.”
It didn’t say what kind of action Iran would take.
The Pegas was among five vessels designated by Washington onFeb. 22- two days before Russia’s irruption of Ukraine- for warrants against Promsvyazbank, a bank viewed as critical to Russia’s defence sector.
It was unclear whether the weight was impounded because it was Iranian canvas or due to the warrants on the tanker over its Russian links. Iran and Russia face separateU.S. warrants.
