Face of Nation : In the recording, an Iranian vessel tells HMS Montrose it wants to inspect the Stena Impero for security reasons.
Defence minister Tobias Ellwood said sanctions against Iran were among the options being considered in response. But Iran’s ambassador to London warned the UK against escalating tensions.
Hamid Baeidinejad said in a tweet: “This is quite dangerous and unwise at a sensitive time in the region. Iran however is firm and ready for different scenarios.”
The UK’s foreign secretary has urged Iran to reverse the tanker’s “illegal” seizure. Jeremy Hunt said MPs would be updated on Monday about what “further measures” the government would take.
On Friday, the Stena Impero was seized by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard in the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route in the Gulf. Tehran said the vessel was “violating international maritime rules”.
Video released by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard-affiliated Fars news agency on Saturday appeared to show the moment the tanker was raided. HMS Montrose was alerted but it was too far away to stop the seizure. Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency said the tanker was captured after it collided with a fishing boat and failed to respond to calls from the smaller craft.
But Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said it was seized in Omani waters in “clear contravention of international law” and then forced to sail into Iran. The tanker’s owners, Stena Bulk, said it had been complying with regulations and had been in international waters.
It said it had requested access to the port of Bandar Abbas to visit crew members, who are Indian, Russian, Latvian and Filipino, and said to be in good health.
The seizure of the Stena Impero comes two weeks after Royal Marines helped seize Iranian tanker Grace 1 off Gibraltar, because of evidence it was carrying oil to Syria in breach of EU sanctions. Mr Hunt said the Grace 1 was detained legally, but Iran described said this was “piracy” and threatened to seize a British oil tanker in retaliation.
