FM spox rejects US claims abou seized Venezuelan tanker
‘US action is a true example of piracy and armed robbery at sea’
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman on Sunday rejected as “baseless” the US claim that a seized Venezuelan tanker in the Caribbean is used to transfer oil for the Islamic Republic.
US President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that the US had detained an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela. The tanker was seized for allegedly being used to transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran, according to Attorney General Pam Bondi.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Thursday said the Department of Justice requested and was approved for a warrant to seize the vessel.
Spokesman Ismaeil Baqaei said the United States always “invents pretexts” for its illegal actions at the international level, adding that the US action against the Venezuelan oil tanker has no basis or legitimacy in international law and is merely an “institutionalized bullying” at the international level.
"The fact that you refer to domestic laws to commit an international crime does not in any way legitimize that action. The US action is a true example of piracy and armed robbery at sea."
He warned about the consequences of such measures, saying that if such violations become normal, all countries and the entire international community will suffer. The Iranian official called on the international community to condemn the US action.
Moreover, the spokesman rejected claims about Iran’s interference in Venezuela’s affairs as “utterly irrelevant.”
He also highlighted the US’s long history of carrying out coups and changing national governments in Latin America.
As an independent and sovereign nation, Venezuela has the right to decide on its foreign relations and engage with the states that act toward it in accordance with mutual respect and reciprocal interests, Baqaei emphasized.
“The party that must be held accountable is the one that insists on violating the right of the Venezuelan people to self-determination and seeks to impose its views on the independent countries of the Western Hemisphere and Latin America.”
The United States has stepped up coercive pressure on Venezuela by deploying military forces to the Caribbean under the pretext of an “anti-drug trafficking” operation.
Since September, US forces have carried out a series of deadly attacks on alleged drug boats, leaving more than 80 people dead.
Venezuelan authorities warn that the campaign is a thinly veiled act of aggression aimed at destabilizing the government, warning that Washington’s real objective is “regime change” and the eventual seizure of the country’s vast oil resources.