Iran Seizes 2nd Oil Tanker in a Week, Escalating Tensions in Gulf Waters
In a recent escalation of tensions in Gulf waters, Iran seized a second oil tanker within a week on Wednesday, according to the US Navy. The Greek-owned, Panama-flagged very large crude carrier Niovi was seized by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) while passing through the narrow Strait of Hormuz. This follows last Thursday’s seizure of the Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker, Advantage Sweet, in the Gulf of Oman.
Iran is currently holding the Advantage Sweet in Bandar Abbas. Maritime security firm Ambrey believes the tanker’s seizure was in response to the US’s court-ordered seizure of an oil cargo aboard the Marshall Islands tanker Suez Rajan. On Wednesday, IRGCN boats forced the Niovi, which was en route from Dubai to the UAE’s Fujairah port, to change course toward Iranian territorial waters.
Approximately one-fifth of the world’s crude oil and oil products pass through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow chokepoint between Iran and Oman. Since 2019, a series of attacks on shipping in the strategic Gulf waters have occurred amid tensions between the US and Iran. Indirect talks between Tehran and Washington to revive Iran’s 2015 nuclear pact with world powers have stalled since September.
