"The seizure of Greek ships by the IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps) is unacceptable. The UK is committed to freedom of navigation and the safety of shipping in the Straits of Hormuz" in the Persian Gulf."
This was the response of a British Foreign Office spokesman to AP-ME when asked for the UK's position on the seizure of the two Greek tankers by the Revolutionary Guards, the elite body of Iran's armed forces.
It is worth noting that, in July 2019, Britain also faced similar problems when the then Revolutionary Guards seized two British oil tankers: the Stena Impero and the Mesdar. The latter was released almost immediately, following instructions received from the Iranian authorities. The Stena Impero, however, after "following the legal procedure and launching the necessary investigations," according to the Revolutionary Guards, was seized because it "did not comply with international maritime regulations."
Britain, like other Western countries, claimed that the seizure of the Stena Impero was in retaliation for the seizure of the Iranian supertanker Grace 1 near Gibraltar 15 days earlier. The British then accused the Grace 1 of violating EU sanctions against Syria.
Eventually, the Stena Impero was released two months later, in September 2019.
At the time, to avoid similar incidents, the British Ministry of Defence decided to send the country's navy ships to escort British-flagged tankers during their passage through the Straits of Hormuz.
Source: APM
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