US Warns of 'Environmental Hazards' from Iranian Oil Tankers

The United States has warned that the continued operation of Iranian oil tankers could lead to an 'environmental disaster' as the Islamic Republic's tankers turn off their 'automatic identification system' to secretly sell oil and avoid detection. The US has urged the global community to prevent Iranian ships from entering their ports, as they will not only face US sanctions but also the risk of incidents and environmental disasters. Brian Hook, the head of the Iran Action Group at the US State Department, announced on Wednesday, November 7, that international insurance companies have been barred from providing services to Iranian vessels, and the Islamic Republic will likely have to rely on domestic companies for ship insurance, which 'are not capable of paying compensation for environmental disasters that could amount to billions of dollars.' He stated that the risk of maritime incidents involving Iranian ships exists from the Suez Canal to the Malacca Strait (in Malaysia) and all major waterways, as Iranian vessels operate everywhere. He added, 'Countries, companies, and ports should be aware that they may themselves be forced to pay compensation for environmental disasters caused by Iranian ships, as Iranian insurance companies do not have such capability.' In recent weeks, multiple reports have emerged about Iranian oil tankers using 'signal turning off' to evade radar tracking. Iran claims it will do everything possible to get its oil to international markets. Turning off signals makes tracking tankers very difficult, but the automatic identification system is actually designed for vessels to see each other under any conditions and be aware of each other's location, movement, and direction. One incident involving an Iranian tanker relates to the Sanchi ship, which sank in the East China Sea last January. This relatively small tanker, carrying about one million barrels of gas condensate, sank, and all 32 crew members died. The Research Center of the Islamic Consultative Assembly estimated the material damages from the sinking of the Sanchi tanker at $110 million, of which $50 million is the value of the ship and $60 million is the value of its cargo. 30% of the oil cargo was insured by an Iranian insurance company and 70% by 11 international insurance companies led by the Norwegian Skuld insurance. The Research Center of the Assembly states that two scenarios could be imagined for the cause of this incident: the first is a malfunction in the navigation and radar system of the two vessels or one of the vessels, and the second is the failure of the AIS (automatic identification system). The 'AIS' is the system that Iranian tankers currently turn off to evade tracking. The US also sanctioned the Sanchi tanker on Monday, November 5, and some Iranian officials expressed surprise that a tanker that no longer exists is included in the sanctions list. Some Iranian officials have said that the US just wants to prolong the sanctions list and that some sanctions have been 'blind.' However, this sanction may pursue another goal as global insurance companies still owe Iran tens of millions of dollars for this incident, and it is unclear whether they will find a way to pay compensation given the sanction on the Sanchi tanker. Meanwhile, Hadi Haqshenas, deputy of the Ports and Maritime Organization of Iran, stated on November 8 in an interview with ILNA that 'so far, none of the foreign ports have announced that they are sanctioning Iranian ports or preventing Iranian ships from entering their port areas.' Haqshenas commented on the issue of reduced unloading and loading in Iranian ports, stating: 'This issue is not related to port and maritime sanctions but rather that the volume of requests for imports and exports has decreased.' Brian Hook emphasized the success of the maximum pressure strategy on Iran, stating that the United States has acted very successfully and precisely in applying maximum pressure on Iran without allowing Iranian sanctions to lead to a spike in oil prices. Mr. Hook also emphasized that the US 'maximum pressure' strategy targets those bank accounts where Iran's oil money is deposited. US officials announced on Monday, November 5, the return of all sanctions against Iran's oil and gas industry as well as shipping. However, it has been announced that eight countries: China, India, Japan, South Korea, Turkey, Italy, Greece, and Taiwan will be temporarily exempt from these sanctions. Donald Trump issued the order to withdraw the US from the nuclear agreement with Iran, known as the JCPOA, on May 8 of this year and ordered the return of all sanctions against the Islamic Republic of Iran. These sanctions have been implemented in two phases. US officials stated at the time of the withdrawal from the JCPOA that they would give Iran's customers until mid-November to completely stop purchasing oil from the Islamic Republic. In this context, Mike Pompeo, the US Secretary of State, stated that more than 20 countries importing oil from Iran have completely stopped their imports from this country, and the supply of more than one million barrels of oil to the market has been cut off.