Iranian tanker crisis .. Washington is stepping up its warnings and confusing the ports of the Mediterranean

Mohamed Minshawi-Washington

The fate of the Iranian supertanker, formerly known as Grace 1, has been widely watched and it was renamed Adrian Darya I after Gibraltar government authorities allowed the tanker to sail after receiving an Iranian pledge not to go to Syria.

The developments in the Iranian tanker crisis reflect a legal dispute between the European Union and the United States, with Brussels imposing broad sanctions on the Syrian regime, while Washington expanded sanctions against Tehran after it withdrew a year before the nuclear deal with Tehran.

The European Union supports the nuclear deal signed with Iran in 2015 before the withdrawal of US President Donald Trump last year, and imposes sanctions aimed at bringing Iranian oil exports to zero.

Washington has informed the Greek government and all Mediterranean ports in advance of the consequences of any facilities for the Iranian oil tanker. "The United States filed a civil complaint against the tanker," a State Department official told reporters. "The State Department issued a clear statement on January 15 announcing that the tanker was helping the IRGC by transporting oil from Iran to Syria."

The Gibraltar authorities ignored a US federal court ruling that the tanker should be detained and prevented from sailing for violating US sanctions against Tehran. They confirmed that they abide by EU laws and not US laws and allowed the tanker to sail.

Unlike the United States, the EU has not designated the IRGC a terrorist organization and has not imposed sanctions as Washington has done.

Pompeo vows
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo used a session of the UN Security Council to discuss Middle East issues on Tuesday to reaffirm his country's policy of putting heavy pressure on Iran and preventing it from exporting oil.

Pompeo also called on countries around the world to join the Gulf Navigation Freedom Initiative aimed at Iran. Speaking to reporters before the start of the Security Council debate, he confirmed his country's determination to track and monitor the tanker. "We have made it clear that anyone who touches it, anyone who supports it, anyone who allows a ship to dock is at risk of sanctions," he said.

A foreign ministry official also threatened the Greek government over the tanker and said he would consider "any efforts to assist the Iranian tanker as support for an organization that the United States lists as a terrorist organization" in reference to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps.

While various reports indicate that the Iranian oil tanker "Adrian Daria 1" may reach the Greek port of Kalamata by the 25th of this month, no one knows the destination of the tanker, especially as Greek officials deny the news.

A State Department legal official warned that "any efforts by the tanker could be seen as providing material support to entities designated by the United States as foreign terrorist organizations, with potential consequences for US immigration and criminal laws."

According to the State Department, any attempt to supply or support the tanker is considered to be a support for a foreign terrorist organization, a crime under US law that could result in severe fines, including imprisonment up to 20 years or life, if such support results in death. Someone.

The State Department also noted that "personnel working on board Iranian auxiliary vessels may become ineligible for visas to the United States under immigration and nationality laws, and that the United States may revoke visas previously granted to crew members."