Iran slams 鈥榝oreign provocation鈥
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Iran yesterday slammed as 鈥減rovocative鈥 a British proposal for a European-led naval mission to escort tankers in the Gulf, amid soaring tensions over the seizure of ships.
鈥淲e heard that they intend to send a European fleet to the Persian Gulf which naturally carries a hostile message, is provocative and will increase tensions,鈥 said Iranian government spokesman Ali Rabiei.
Britain said last Monday that it was planning a European-led force to escort tankers through the world鈥檚 busiest oil shipping lane in response to Iran鈥檚 seizure of a UK-flagged vessel on July 19.
The seizure of the Stena Impero came two weeks after British authorities detained an Iranian tanker, the Grace 1, off its overseas territory Gibraltar on allegations the ship was breaching EU sanctions on Syria.
In his comments yesterday, the government spokesman said Iran believed the security of the oil-rich Gulf had to be maintained by countries in the region.
鈥淲e are the biggest agent of maritime security in the Persian Gulf,鈥 Rabiei said, quoted by ISNA news agency.
Iran鈥檚 President Hassan Rouhani said such a force would only make matters worse.
鈥淭he presence of foreign forces will not help the region鈥檚 security and will be the main source of tensions,鈥 Rouhani said after talks in Tehran with Oman鈥檚 Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Yusuf bin Alawi.
Britain last Thursday ordered its navy to escort UK-flagged ships through the Strait of Hormuz, where the Stena Impero was seized by Iran鈥檚 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
But it has so far only received a cool response from the continent to its proposal for a multinational escort fleet that would exclude the US.
France said last Thursday it was not willing to send extra military assets to the Gulf, but would share information and coordinate its currently deployed assets.
The US military has said it is already monitoring the strait and developing a 鈥渕ultinational maritime effort鈥 dubbed Operation Sentinel to increase surveillance and security in key Middle East waterways.
The 33-kilometer-wide Strait of Hormuz links the Persian Gulf with the open sea and runs between the United Arab Emirates and Iran.
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