Iran won’t tolerate Britain’s maritime piracy: Defense chief

Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami has slammed as an act of “piracy” Britain's seizure of an Iranian oil tanker in the Strait of Gibraltar, saying Tehran will not tolerate such actions.

“The action runs counter to international regulations and is a kind of maritime piracy,” Hatami said, while addressing a ceremony in the southern Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas on Monday.

Referring to the Islamic Republic long record in combating piracy, he said: “Definitely this maritime piracy will not be tolerated by us”.

Gibraltar police and customs agencies, aided by a detachment of British Royal Marines, boarded and impounded Iranian supertanker Grace 1 in the Strait of Gibraltar on Thursday, upon a request from the United States.

Later that day, Iran’s Foreign Ministry summoned Britain’s ambassador to the country to express its strong protest at the move.Addressing a ceremony in the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas, Hatami said the move was threatening and incorrect, noting that such threats “will not be tolerated by us”.

Elsewhere in his Monday remarks, the Iranian defense minister hailed the Iranian armed forces for shooting down an intruding US spy drone in the Persian Gulf last month.

He said the incident sent a message to Washington that Iran will defend its borders no matter what.

He highlighted Iran’s capability in manufacturing the military equipment it needed, saying “we spare no effort to defend the country’s borders.”

Taking the podium after Hatami, Chief Commander of the Iranian Army Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi said Monday that the Islamic Republic was not after war with any country, but it would give a “crushing response to any act of aggression”.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran, as it has been repeatedly announced, is not after a war with any country, but it has learned very well how to defend itself,” he said.

Earlier in May, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei played down Washington’s belligerent posture against Iran.

Ayatollah Khamenei ruled out the possibility of war between the US and Iran, saying Washington knew that engaging in such a conflict would not be in its interest.

SS