We cover piracy, armed robbery at sea, IUU fishing, maritime cyber security and maritime security issues.
A report by Bloomberg says that a British oil tanker is staying in the Persian Gulf in fear of being seized by Iran in retaliation for an Iranian tanker impounded by the British and Gibraltar authorities since July 4.
The mid-size oil tanker capable of carrying one million barrels of oil was reportedly moving toward one of Iraq’s oil terminals when it changed course and is currently anchored close to Saudi Arabia.
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Source: en.radiofarda.com
Informed sources in Iran have dismissed the fabricated news of the seizure of a British oil tanker in the Persian Gulf, IRIB News Agency reported.
Earlier in the day, certain journalists and observers tracked the movement of the UK-flagged supertanker ‘Pacific Voyager’ in the Persian Gulf, and reported that it has “suspiciously” come to a halt in the middle of the Persian Gulf.
The reports were also dismissed by a United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) official, who told Reuters the oil tanker was “safe and well”.
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‘If other countries have clear information, I am sure the international community will easily listen to them,’ says Emirati foreign minister on Wednesday
The United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan said on Wednesday that no country could be held responsible for the latest attacks on oil tankers in the Gulf.
Speaking during a press conference with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow, Al-Nahyan said his country needs “clear and convincing evidence” regarding the recent attacks that targeted four vessels off the UAE coast last month, including two Saudi oil tankers.
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Source: middleeasteye.net
Experts are skeptical that U.S. allies will get on board.
In the wake of alleged aggression from Iran in the Persian Gulf, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo rolled out a new plan this week, dubbed “Sentinel,” to recruit U.S. partners to help enhance security for ships traversing the Strait of Hormuz and other choke points.
But experts are skeptical that the United States can get allies in the Gulf, Europe, or Asia to shore up the resources needed to make a significant difference to the commercial vessels facing threats from Tehran in the world’s busiest shipping lanes.
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Source: foreignpolicy.com
Questioning the longstanding American policy of defending maritime security in the Persian Gulf, President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the United States does not “need to be there” for merchant shipping in the region.
“China gets 91% of its Oil from the [Strait of Hormuz], Japan 62%, & many other countries likewise. So why are we protecting the shipping lanes for other countries (many years) for zero compensation. All of these countries should be protecting their own ships on what has always been a dangerous journey,” he wrote in a Twitter post on Tuesday morning. “We don’t even need to be there in that the U.S. has just become (by far) the largest producer of Energy anywhere in the world!”
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Source: maritime-executive.com
The United States is launching a new maritime security initiative for the Persian Gulf region to counter the threat of Iranian attacks on shipping, a State Department official told reporters Monday. During previous regional conflicts, the U.S. Navy has periodically provided escorts for merchant shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, but this effort would be multilateral, according to the official.
The new program, called Sentinel, would be implemented with both material assets and monetary contributions from participating nations. The participants have not yet been named, but the official said that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo would seek the support of Saudi Arabia on Monday during a visit to Jeddah.
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Source: maritime-executive.com
Maritime security firms have seen demand soar following the attacks on oil tankers on June 13. But defending ships from allegedly involved state-backed forces such as Iran’s Revolutionary Guard may not be easy.
Author Ashutosh Pandey
The demand for private maritime security personnel has shot up since the attacks on oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman on June 13, as shippers step up efforts to protect their ships and keep global trade going.
The US has blamed Iran for the attacks, which took place near the Strait of Hormuz, which is used to transport a third of the world’s seaborne crude. Iran has denied the accusations.
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The development has come in the wake of the attack on oil tankers raising tensions between US and Iran
WRITTEN BY Sidhant Sibal
In a major development the Indian Navy has launched Operation Sankalp in the Persian Gulf/Gulf of Oman as a measure to re-assure Indian flagged vessels transiting through the region. The development has come in the wake of the attack on oil tankers raising tensions between US and Iran.
While Tehran denies involvement, Washington says that the West Asian country was behind it. Pentagon has released footage of Iran’s special forces removing unexploded mine.
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Source: dnaindia.com
The Financial Times reports that the recent incidents in the Gulf of Oman have seen a rise in calls to maritime security companies by concerned shipping firms.
Since the attacks on the Front Altair and Kokuka Courageous, shipping companies who transit the region on a regular basis have been looking into additional protection for their vessels. During the height of Somali piracy in the region, it was the norm for the merchant marine to employ teams of armed guards in order to deter any potential attack, and it worked. No merchant vessel with armed guards has ever been hijacked in the Indian Ocean. That, combined with more aggressive and visible patrolling by the international naval forces present in the region, has seen the issue of piracy off Somalia reduce considerably since 2012.
The current threat, believed to be from Iran’s IRGC – an accusation denied by Iran – is leading to an increase in demand for armed protection services, a sector which has suffered considerably from rate cuts and an influx of cheaper personnel in recent years.
The main UK Private Maritime Security Companies (PMSC), such as Ambrey Risk and MAST report an increase in demand from previous and prospective clients keen to ensure the safety of their ships in the region.
While a team of armed guards is no match for the IRGC, even an unarmed security detail can offer additional security. Well trained guards on Watch duties can spot threats that crew might miss or dismiss as the local pattern of life and, while engaging hostile state actors is unlikely, they can offer the Master an early warning system that he may lack.
With the situation in the region fluid, it’s possible that a convoy escort programme, similar to that used in the Internationally Recognised Transit Corridor (IRTC) in the Gulf of Aden may be adopted, with support from the US Navy. Russia, China, South Korea and Japan’s MSDF have all run escorts through the Gulf of Aden, and a multi-national force may be more palatable to states bordering Iran.
However, nothing has been officially announced, leaving the shipping industry scrambling to come up with its own solutions, as is so often the case. The threat posed to vessels in the region continues to be real and the situation dangerous for crews.
A US military surveillance drone has been shot down by Iranian forces while flying over the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said the drone had violated Iranian airspace. But US military said it had been over international waters.
IRGC commander-in-chief Maj-Gen Hossein Salami said the downing of the drone sent a “clear message to America” that Iran’s borders were its “red line”.
It comes at a time of escalating tension between the US and Iran.
On Monday, the US defence department said it was deploying 1,000 extra troops to the region in response to “hostile behaviour” by Iranian forces.
The US has also accused Iran of attacking two oil tankers with mines last Thursday just outside the Strait of Hormuz, in the Gulf of Oman. Iran rejects the allegation.
It was the second time in a month tankers have been attacked close in the region, through which a fifth of the world’s oil passes each day.
Tensions were further fuelled on Monday when Iran announced its stockpile of low-enriched uranium would next week exceed limits it agreed with world powers under a landmark nuclear deal in 2015.
Iran stepped up its production in response to tightening economic sanctions from the US, which unilaterally withdrew from the deal last year.
The IRGC said its air force shot down the US drone in the early hours of Thursday after the unmanned aircraft violated Iranian airspace near Kuhmobarak in the southern province of Hormozgan.
The drone was identified by the IRGC as a RQ-4 Global Hawk, but the US military official told Reuters news agency the drone was a US Navy MQ-4C Triton, a maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft based on the RQ-4B Global Hawk.
Later, in a speech carried live on Iranian state TV, Gen Salami warned the US that it needed to respect Iran’s territorial integrity and national security.
“The downing of the American drone was a clear message to America… our borders are our red line and we will react strongly against any aggression.”
He added: “Iran is not seeking war with any country, but we are fully prepared to defend Iran.”
Last week, the US military accused Iran of attempting to shoot down a US MQ-9 Reaper armed drone with a surface-to-air missile in an attempt to disrupt surveillance of one of the tankers that was attacked, the Kokuka Courageous.
The drone had earlier observed a fire on board the other tanker, the Front Altair.
The previous week, another US MQ-9 Reaper was shot down over Yemen by a surface-to-air missile fired by the Iran-backed rebel Houthi movement.
The US military said the altitude of the engagement “indicated an improvement over previous Houthi capability, which we assess was enabled by Iranian assistance”. Iran denies providing weapons to the Houthis.
In 2011, Iran said it had captured a US RQ-170 Sentinel reconnaissance drone that had been reported lost by US forces in neighbouring Afghanistan. It developed its own version of the drone, one of which was shot down by Israel last year.
Source: bbc.co.uk
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