Iranian Oil Tanker Seized by Indonesia
Indonesia’s coast guard announced the seizure of an oil tanker flying the Iranian flag in the country’s waters.
According to Reuters news agency, on Tuesday morning, July 11, Indonesia’s coast guard seized the oil tanker “Arman 114,” which was suspected of illegally transferring crude oil.
The Arman 114, flying an Iranian flag, was seized while allegedly transferring 272,000 tons of light crude oil without authorization to another vessel named “Stinnes,” which flies a Cameroonian flag. Additionally, in January, another Iranian-flagged oil tanker engaged in illegal oil transfers was seized in Indonesian waters.
According to the coast guard’s statement, the aforementioned tanker (Arman 114) is also suspected of violating other maritime regulations including “disabling the automatic identification system, sailing without a flag, and operating without port clearance.”
It is worth noting that some international oil tanker tracking companies have also reported, following U.S. sanctions against Iran, that Iran’s state fleet engaged in oil transfers was turning off its navigation systems to circumvent sanctions and transferring its cargo on the water to oil tankers of companies seeking Iranian oil.
