By Phil Stewart WASHINGTON, July 18 (Reuters) - The United States is not aiming to set up a military coalition against Iran with its new security initiative in the Gulf, but simply "shining a flashlight" in the region to deter attacks on commercial ships, a top Pentagon official told Reuters. Kathryn Wheelbarger, who briefed NATO allies this week on the U.S. proposal, said … [Read more...]
Iran Says it Seized a Foreign Tanker in Gulf
By Parisa Hafezi and Alexander Cornwell DUBAI, July 18 (Reuters) - Iran said on Thursday it had seized a foreign tanker smuggling fuel in the Gulf, and the U.S. military commander in the region said the United States would work "aggressively" to ensure free passage of vessels through the vital waterway. The United States blames Iran for a series of attacks on shipping … [Read more...]
Iran Says it Could Close Strait of Hormuz, But Doesn’t Want To
By David Marino (Bloomberg) --Iran is capable of shutting the Strait of Hormuz -- a crucial choke-point for oil flows -- but doesn’t want to do it, the country’s foreign minister said. "We certainly have the ability to do it, but we certainly don’t want to do it because the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf are our lifeline," Mohammad Javad Zarif said Wednesday in an … [Read more...]
Iran Says Missing Tanker Had Problems and Was Towed for Repairs
(Bloomberg) --A small oil tanker that had gone missing in the Persian Gulf had technical difficulties and was towed into Iranian waters for repairs, an Iranian foreign ministry official said, according to the ISNA news agency. Further details on the ship, the Panamanian-flagged Riah, will be announced later, Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said, according to the … [Read more...]
UK Doesn’t Plan to Escort All British Ships Through Hormuz
By Guy Faulconbridge LONDON, July 11 (Reuters) - Britain does not intend to escort every British-flagged merchant vessel through the Strait of Hormuz, a security source said on Thursday, after a Royal Navy warship had to stop three Iranian vessels from blocking the passage of a BP-operated tanker. The source said London would be resolute in defending its maritime interests … [Read more...]