Iranian forces have seized three commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz – the most critical waterway for the world’s oil industry – over alleged maritime violations, prompting a backlash from a spate of Western countries, primarily the United States.
Iran has seized another foreign tanker in the Gulf, Iranian state media say. A Revolutionary Guard Corps commander was quoted as saying its naval forces had "seized a foreign tanker in the Persian Gulf that was smuggling fuel for some Arab countries".
The US has officially requested Germany, France and the UK join its troops in an anti-Iran program that would escort Western tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, despite Berlin and Paris’ trade interests with Tehran. With only London on board, Washington may augment their original “request” and resort to classic bullying.
The INSTEX payment mechanism for trade with Iran and the situation around the heavy water reactor in Arak will be the main topics at the upcoming meeting of the Joint Commission of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), known as the Iran nuclear deal, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said.
The United States will sanction any country that imports Iranian oil and there are no exemptions in place, the United States special envoy for Iran said on Friday.
President Donald Trump has said the US military was "cocked and loaded to retaliate" against Iran, but he changed his mind 10 minutes before planned strikes.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani will visit Moscow for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in March, the TASS news agency quoted the Iranian embassy in Moscow as saying on Tuesday.
