The US department of defence said on Tuesday that its forces boarded an oil tanker that they say was previously sanctioned for smuggling Iranian crude oil in Asia.
According to a social media post from the Pentagon, the US forces “conducted a right-of-visit maritime interdiction” and boarded the M/T Tifani “without incident.” The Pentagon called the vessel “stateless” even though it carried a flag of Botswana.
The move comes amid the US blockade of Iranian ports, which was then extended to all Iranian-flagged ships along with any vessel that provides material support to the country.
This move amid the US-Iran war is claimed to stop any ship tied to Tehran or those suspected of carrying supplies that could help its government, from weapons and oil to metals and electronics.
The Pentagon announcement comes hours ahead of the expiration of an already tenuous ceasefire between the US and Iran, and as Pakistan attempts to broker talks between Washington and Tehran.
Ship was carrying oil between Sri Lanka and Indonesia in the Indian Ocean
According to ship-tracking data, the Tifani was carrying oil in the Indian Ocean on Tuesday between Sri Lanka and Indonesia. The Pentagon described the Tifani as “stateless” despite it being a Botswana-flagged vessel. The department of defence announcement did not say precisely where or at what time on Tuesday the ship was boarded.
“As we have made clear, we will pursue global maritime enforcement efforts to disrupt illicit networks and interdict sanctioned vessels providing material support to Iran —anywhere they operate,” the Pentagon announcement said, echoing previous statements from Trump administration officials.
“International waters are not a refuge for sanctioned vessels,” it added.
What the US has said about the blockade
The US chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine said last week that the US blockade would extend beyond Iranian waters and the war theater under control of the US Central Command.
US forces in other areas of responsibility “will actively pursue any Iranian-flagged vessel or any vessel attempting to provide material support to Iran,” General Caine told reporters at the Pentagon.
He specifically pointed to operations in the Pacific and explained that the US would target vessels that left before the blockade began outside the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway for energy and other shipments.
The military also detailed an expansive list of goods that it considers contraband, declaring that it will board, search and seize them from merchant vessels “regardless of location.”
A notice published Thursday says any “goods that are destined for an enemy and that may be susceptible to use in armed conflict” are “subject to capture at any place beyond neutral territory.”
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