Forces from the Iranian Navy on Thursday afternoon boarded the Suezmax tanker Advantage Sweet in international waters in the Gulf of Oman. The ship was subsequently directed to Iranian waters, where it has now been seized - accused of having rammed an unidentified Iranian ship.
The level of tension between the United States and Iran has been raised once again with the seizure of the tanker chartered by the American oil company Chevron and on its way to Houston loaded with refined petroleum products.
According to Iranian authorities, the ship, which sails under the flag of the Marshall Islands, has been seized because it collided with an Iranian vessel, where two crew members are missing, and subsequently tried to escape.
The US, on the other hand, believes that the ship must be released immediately.
“Iran's actions violate international law and disrupt regional security and stability. The Iranian government should immediately release the oil tanker,” reads a statement from the US Central Command, CENTCOM.
The now seized tanker of 159,000 dwt. was built in 2012 and under the management of the Turkish company Denizcilik Nakliyati for the Swiss Advantage Tankers, which has leased the ship from a Chinese company.
This is not the first time Iran has seized commercial ships in the area. The last major incident was the seizure of two Greek-controlled tankers in retaliation for Greece's seizure of an Iranian tanker loaded with oil that the United States demanded be seized. Iran won this case in Greek courts and subsequently released the two tankers last November.
Source: Maritime Executive.
