US Navy Calls Iran Again Confiscating Foreign Tanker Ships In Gulf Waters

Niovi tanker. (Source: Vessel Finder/Gyssels Gilbert)

JAKARTA - Iranian authorities again seized foreign oil tankers in Gulf Waters on Wednesday, the second in a week, while the US State Department called for their release, in the latest escalation in a series of seizures or attacks on commercial vessels in Gulf waters since 2019.

The Bahrain-based US Navy's Fifth Fleet said the Panamanian-flagged oil tanker Niovi was arrested by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGCN) Navy at 6:20 a.m. local time while passing through the Strait of Hormuz, as reported by Reuters on May 4.

In Iran's first response, Tehran prosecutors announced the oil tanker was seized on a court order following a complaint from the plaintiff, Mizan's court news agency said. No further details were provided.

The Niovi oil tanker was traveling from Dubai (UAE) to the port of Fujairah UAE when it was forced by the IRGCN ship to change course to Iran's territorial waters, the US Navy said.

Niovi last reported his position at 02:31 GMT on Wednesday off the coast of Oman, precisely in the Strait of Hormuz to Fujairah, according to data on tracking of the Refinitiv ship.

According to the International Maritime Organization's delivery database, Niovi owners are Grand Financing Co., while the manager is a Greek-based Smart Tankers, who did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Separately, US State Department Deputy Spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters President Joe Biden's Administration and "international community" called on Iran and its Navy to release its ships and crew.

"Iran's harassment of ships as well as interference with navigation rights in regional and international waters, is against international law and disrupts regional stability and security," Patel criticized.

Earlier, Iran seized an oil tanker with the Marshall Islands flag in Oman Bay called Advantage Sweet on Thursday last week. The tanker was detained by Iranian authorities in Bandar Abbas, the Marshall Islands flag registration office on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, maritime security firm Ambrey said it believed the confiscation of Advantage Sweet was a response to a recent seizure by a court order by the United States on oil cargo aboard the Marshall Islands tanker Suez Rajan.

It is known that about a fifth of the world's crude and oil products pass through the Strait of Hormuz, the intersection point between Iran and Oman, according to data from analytic firm Vortexa.

"The increasing military activity and geopolitical tensions in the region continue to pose a serious threat to commercial ships," the Marshall Islands flag registrition said in a warning on Tuesday.

"Regarding this threat is a potential miscalculation or misidentification, which can lead to aggressive action."

Since 2019, there have been a series of attacks on shipping in strategic Gulf waters, during tensions between the United States and Iran.

Indirect talks between Tehran and Washington to revive Iran's 2015 nuclear pact with world powers have stalled since September due to various issues, including Tehran's crackdown on protesters, the sale of Tehran drones to Russia to the acceleration of its nuclear program.