US Seizes 4 Iranian Fuel Tankers En Route To Venezuela, Diverts To Houston

[RonZeplin]

Lie, cheat & steal oil tankers.
Neocon Hillary could have done that too.

US Seizes 4 Iranian Fuel Tankers En Route To Venezuela, Diverts To Houston

It's been revealed that for the first time the US has successfully confiscated Iranian fuel cargo on the high seas that were deemedin violation of sweeping US-led sanctions on Iran's energy sector.

Recall that in late May Iran delivered five tankers laden with fuel to Venezuela at a moment the US was threatening military blockade in the Caribbean. Maduro sent military jets and warships to escort the Iranian tankers, which both countries hailed as a rare, victorious act of defiance against Washington's plans.

Later in July, when Iran again sent tankers for a second round of deliveries, which the two countries earlier announced would be 'routine', US federal prosecutors filed a lawsuit for the seizure of over 1.1 million barrels of gasoline on the four vessels. A judge issued a warrant for the seizure, but it remained unclear whether this could or would be carried out if the tankers never enter US territorial waters.

Iranian oil tanker Fortune anchored near a refinery in Venezuela, via AP.

The efforts apparently met with success, as The Wall Street Journal reports, "One official said the vessels had been taken over without the use of military force but didn’t provide any details."

No doubt it was done either in international waters or in the territory of an ally friendly to the US maximum pressure campaign seeking to choke Tehran. The vessels - the Luna, Panid, Bering, and Bella - are now in US custody, said by the WSJ to be en route to Houston.

"Senior administration officials are expected to meet the tankers in the coming days at an event scheduled to mark the docking, the officials said," according to the report.


https://www.zerohedge.com/geopoliti...el-tankers-en-route-venezuela-diverts-houston

 

[XNavyNuke]

VBSS is perfectly legal under international law during maritime security operations, even without a UN resolution, as long as the intercepting country has flag state consent. Since all four vessel were flagged by Liberia, approval of the intercept was a given. Had they been Iranian flagged vessels I'm assuming that US authorities wouldn't have been given consent. A US warrant applied to international waters only has the weight given to it by the flag state. In Iran, that would have been zero.

As to WaPo and ZeroH, just another example of "reporting" meant to inflame a political wing rather than informing the reader. They should stick to SARS-CoV-2 and mask wearing.

XNN

 

[Pauls' Revere]

ROFLMAO

 

[RonZeplin]

VBSS is perfectly legal under international law during maritime security operations, even without a UN resolution, as long as the intercepting country has flag state consent. Since all four vessel were flagged by Liberia, approval of the intercept was a given. Had they been Iranian flagged vessels I'm assuming that US authorities wouldn't have been given consent. A US warrant applied to international waters only has the weight given to it by the flag state. In Iran, that would have been zero.

As to WaPo and ZeroH, just another example of "reporting" meant to inflame a political wing rather than informing the reader. They should stick to SARS-CoV-2 and mask wearing.

XNN

It's called piracy. There's virtually no difference between the President Donnell Trump administration & the Barbary Pirates.

 

[XNavyNuke]

It's called piracy. There's virtually no difference between the President Donnell Trump administration & the Barbary Pirates.

I for one often find your passions admirable and your use of hyperbole hilarious. This act is not virtually piracy, literally piracy, figuratively piracy, or legally piracy. There was clearly an agreement between the intercepting state (United States) and the flag state (Liberia). This happens scores of times every year between nations all around the globe and is perfectly legitimate under international law. To the extent that the state shipping the cargo (Iran) has any claim to its loss, those claims would go to the insurance carrier, though I assume that a group like Lloyd's would consider a confiscation to be an unrecoverable loss. The mullahs should closely read their terms and conditions, if they even bothered to insure their cargo.

Now, if you actually want to stir the $hitpot you could easily take the approach of influence when the DOJ had the original warrant issued. Given the entrenched deep state and their agenda, the sitting Administration and theirs, and possibility of a rogue black robe on the bench, there is a plethora of conspiracies that could be woven. Given recent history, one or more of these is easily plausible.

But piracy? No.

XNN

 

[Pauls' Revere]

We can sell the oil and pay for a wall? LOL

 

[AngryCanadian]

Thats ok Biden would problary gift Iran Millions again as Obama did.

 

[Swordsmyth]

​

[h=2]Iran Insists Seized Tankers & Fuel Didn't Belong To Them [/h]

 

[XNavyNuke]

​

[h=2]Iran Insists Seized Tankers & Fuel Didn't Belong To Them [/h]

From the ZH article you linked. Paragraph #2

Yet details have not emerged as to precisely how the seizure of the fuel aboard four Iranian vessels - the Luna, Panid, Bering, and Bella - went down last Thursday. A US official emphasized to the WSJ last week the vessels were taken "without the use of military force" but provided no further details.

This idiot doesn't even understand the concept of "detail". These vessels were not Iranian. The cargo was Iranian petroleum product. The ships were owned by various Greek companies and were Liberian-flagged.

A judge issued a warrant for the seizure, but it remained unclear whether this could or would be carried out if the tankers never enter US territorial waters. The ships were most certainly "diverted" to Houston far outside US waters.

The ships were not "certainly 'diverted'". Adm Malloy COMNAVCENT said earlier today the the cargoes had been transferred at sea.

https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/tehran-admits-seized-gasoline-cargoes-were-iranian-produced

Vice Adm. James Malloy, commander of U.S. Fifth Fleet, told Bloomberg on Monday that the cargoes were transferred to U.S.-chartered tankers while at sea, ending ambiguity over whether the four target vessels would be carrying the fuel directly to a U.S. seaport. Two of them carried out ship-to-ship transfers in the vicinity of Mozambique, and the other two handed over their cargoes in the Gulf of Oman.

And, since no one has bothered to post a link to the actual complaint - here it is (PDF warning.)
https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1291321/download

XNN

 

[XNavyNuke]

Round two. At least this time the ayatollahs are using Iranian flagged vessels and have turned off their transponders (like that will help.) Getting a warrant from a federal court won't help this time around.

https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/report-three-more-iranian-tankers-under-way-with-fuel-for-venezuela

XNN

 

[XNavyNuke]

Clearly the Administration did not get the memo that they are all on Putin's payroll.

Venezuelan VLCC tanker suddenly turned into Russian
https://www.fleetmon.com/maritime-news/2020/30949/venezuelan-vlcc-tanker-suddenly-turned-russian/

Venezuelan VLCC was registered in this second register, so for all purposes, VLCC may be considered registered under a FOC.
What’s the purpose of it? I guess, it’s mainly the question of security, to avoid US sanctions and probably, seizure. Russian flag may provide such protection, or may not, who knows.

The Russians know how to play the international law game very well.

XNN