Iran Seizes South Korean-Flagged Oil Tanker En Route To The UAE

Iran on Monday seized a South Korean-flagged oil tanker in the crucial Strait of Hormuz, further escalating tensions in the Middle East between Tehran and the West.

Western officials said on Monday that they feared the MT Hankuk Chemi had been seized. Iran later acknowledged the seizure, alleging “oil pollution” sparked the move. However, hours earlier, Tehran had said a South Korean diplomat was due to travel there to negotiate over billions of dollars in its assets now frozen in Seoul.

Satellite data from MarineTraffic.com showed the MT Hankuk Chemi off Bandar Abbas on Monday afternoon, with no explanation as to the change in the vessel’s path. It had been traveling from Jubail, Saudi Arabia, to Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates. The ship had been carrying an unknown chemical shipment, according to data-analysis firm Refinitiv.

First photos of the Fujairah-bound South Korean chemical tanker HANKUK CHEMI, which was seized today by IRGC Navy because of "chemical pollution" in Iran's waters pic.twitter.com/1P8t1vxV8w

— Reza Khaasteh (@Khaaasteh) January 4, 2021

Calls to South Korea’s Foreign Ministry and the ship’s listed owner, DM Shipping Co. Ltd. of Busan, South Korea, were not immediately answered after business hours Monday. Iran did not acknowledge the vessel’s location.

The United Kingdom Marine Trade Operations, an information exchange overseen by the British royal navy in the region, acknowledged an “interaction” between a merchant vessel and Iranian authorities in the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which 20% of all the world’s oil passes.

As a result, the UKMTO said the merchant vessel made an “alteration of course” north into Iran’s territorial waters.

Cmdr. Rebecca Rebarich, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, said authorities there were aware and monitoring the situation.

Ambrey, a British security firm, reported the incident as an apparent seizure. Dryad Global, another maritime security firm, said the ship’s crew was 23 sailors from Indonesia and Myanmar.

(AP)