TEHRAN, April 19 (Xinhua) — Iranian armed forces intercepted two oil tankers attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, the semi-official Tasnim News Agency reported, as tensions persist over maritime access to the strategic waterway.
The vessels, sailing under the flags of Botswana and Angola, tried to pass through the strait “illegally” but were forced to turn back after Iranian intervention, according to the report.
Separately, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei rejected European calls for unrestricted, fee-free passage through the strait, accusing the European Union of “peak hypocrisy” in its application of international law.
Responding to a post by EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas on social media platform X, Baghaei wrote: “Oh, that ‘international law?!’ The one that the EU dusts off to lecture others while quietly green-lighting a U.S.-Israeli war of aggression (against Iran) — and looking the other way on atrocities against Iranians?!”
“Spare the sermons; Europe’s chronic failure to practice what it preaches has turned its ‘international law’ talk into peak hypocrisy,” he added.
Kallas had warned that “any pay-for-passage scheme” would set “a dangerous precedent for global maritime routes,” adding that the EU’s Aspides naval mission is “already operating in the Red Sea and can be quickly strengthened to protect shipping across the region.”
“Aspides,” meaning “shield” in Greek, is an EU naval mission launched in February 2024 to safeguard freedom of navigation in the Red Sea and nearby waters.
Iran has tightened its control over the Strait of Hormuz since the United States and Israel launched large-scale airstrikes on the Islamic Republic, barring passage to vessels linked to Israel and the United States. The U.S. later imposed its own restrictions after peace talks with Iran in Islamabad collapsed.
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said Friday the strait would remain “completely open” to commercial shipping during a two-week Iran-U.S. ceasefire that began April 8. However, Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, the country’s main military command, said Saturday it had resumed strict enforcement over the strait, citing continued U.S. restrictions.
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