Greece’s Shipping Ministry has made a “strong recommendation” to Greek shipping companies to avoid Iranian territorial waters when crossing the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz and Gulf of Oman.
The guidance comes after Iranian warnings that more Greek tankers currently in the Persian Gulf could be seized amid a row over the confiscation of Iranian oil by the United States from a tanker held off Greece’s coast.
Earlier, Iran responded to calls from France and the EU to release the Greek tankers it seized on May 27, with renewed threats against Greek shipping.
The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) detained two Greek-flagged oil tankers in the Persian Gulf on May 27. The vessels have been identified as the MV Delta Poseidon, and the MV Prudent Warrior.
The two vessels stopped transmitting on AIS, at 13:06UTC, and 11:08UTC respectively. Both vessels were boarded by IRGC helicopters, who subsequently detained the vessels and crews. The last position received for both vessels was in international waters. Commenting on the incident, Athens said both actions violated international law.
Commenting on the incident, Iran’s maritime body said that the crew of two Greek tankers had not been detained, are in good health, and are being cared for on board their vessels.
This incident comes against the backdrop of the seizure of the Iranian crude oil tanker anchored off the Greek island of Evia in the Aegean Sea on the 26th of May 2022. The tanker registered as LANA, formerly known as PEGAS, has been operating under the Iranian flag since the 1st of May 2022 and was previously owned by a Russian company.
The tanker was sanctioned by Greek authorities for carrying sanctioned Iranian oil. In response, the Iranian Port and Maritime Organization called the incident an act of piracy and demanded that Greece respect maritime law.