UK says Iran tanker will be freed after guarantees on destination
British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt sought to ease tensions with Iran on Saturday, saying a tanker held by Gibraltar would be released if Tehran guaranteed it was not heading to Syria. He said he had a "constructive call" with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif, who he said assured him that Tehran "is not seeking to escalate" tensions between the countries. "I reassured him our concern was destination not origin of the oil on Grace One," a tanker seized off the coast of the tiny British territory of Gibraltar on July 4, Hunt tweeted.
John Bolton , White House national security adviser and notorious Iraq-era hawk, is a man on a mission. Given broad latitude over policy by Donald Trump , he is widely held to be driving the US confrontation with Iran . And in his passionate bid to tame Tehran, Bolton cares little who gets hurt
The former UN ambassador under George W Bush and a notorious hawk, Bolton has called for bombing Iran and North Korea.
Iran has accused Donald Trump's national security adviser John Bolton of attempting to drag the UK into a 'quagmire' over the Gulf crisis.
The Middle Eastern nation's foreign minister Javad Zarif tweeted on Sunday said that the US politician was 'turning his venom' on Britain in an attempt to start the 'War of the Century'.
'Make no mistake: Having failed to lure @realDonaldTrump into War of the Century, and fearing collapse of his #B_Team, @AmbJohnBolton is turning his venom against the UK in hopes of dragging it into a quagmire,' Zarif tweeted.
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© Provided by Associated Newspapers Limited Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (pictured) slammed US national security adviser John Bolton 
© Provided by Associated Newspapers Limited He tweeted on Sunday saying that Bolton was 'turning his venom against the UK' over the Gulf crisis 'Only prudence and foresight can thwart such ploys.'
Iran 'may have seized' oil tanker that went off radar at weekend
Iran may have seized a small oil tanker travelling through the Strait of Hormuz after its tracker stopped transmitting its location, a US official has said. © Reuters An oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz: File pic The Panama-flagged Riah was in Iranian territorial waters near Qeshm Island, which is home to a Revolutionary Guard base, the defence official told the Associated Press (AP) news agency. © Sky News Screen Grab The tanker was travelling through the Strait of Hormuz "We certainly have suspicions that it was taken," the official said.
Donald Trump ’ s national security adviser John Bolton wants the United States to go to war with Iran . And everything that the Trump administration has done over its Iran policy, particularly since Bolton became Trump ’ s top foreign policy adviser in April of 2018, must be viewed through this lens
Iran denies this and accuses Britain of breaking international law. Mr Trump ’ s advisors have been busy trying to box in the president. In May last year Mike Pompeo, the secretary of On July 18th John Bolton , Mr Trump ’ s national security advisor , tweeted that “one of the worst mistakes of the
Britain and Iran have been at loggerheads since the Royal Navy seized an Iranian vessel, which is currently being held in Gibraltar.
Iran retaliated this week by taking a British oil tanker and its crew into custody near the Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf.
Defence Minister Tobias Ellwood was today forced to deny that the UK had taken its 'eye off the ball' and said the Government was looking at a 'series of options' after Iranian forces seized the UK-flagged tanker.
In Pictures: Iran / US tensions [Microsoft GES]
Undated handout photo issued by Stena Bulk of the British oil tanker Stena Impero which is believed to have been captured in Iranian waters whilst en route to Saudi Arabia. Owner Stena Bulk has confirmed that the tanker was approached by unidentified small crafts and a helicopter whilst in international waters in the Strait of Hormuz and they are unable to contact the vessel which is now heading north towards Iran.
Iran sentences 'CIA spies' to death after 'breaking ring'
Iran says it has broken up a CIA spying ring and sentenced some of the 17 suspects to death. Reports on state television quoted the Intelligence Ministry, according to the semi-official Fars news agency. This latest development follows weeks of tension between Iran and the US. On Saturday, Iran released a video which it said disproved President Donald Trump's claim that a US warship destroyed an Iranian drone. The American president said the USS Boxer took "defensive action" on Thursday after the drone ignored repeated warnings and came within 1,000 yards of the ship in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran denies this and accuses Britain of breaking international law. Gibraltar’ s supreme court The skies over the Gulf are growing tense as well. On July 18th the USS Boxer, an American warship It will undermine Iran ’ s strategy of trying to drive a wedge between America and European powers
Iran seized two oil tankers – one registered in the UK, the other in Liberia – in the strait of Hormuz on Friday, marking a dramatic escalation in the worsening standoff in the Gulf . Iran ’ s Revolutionary Guards claimed to have taken the British -flagged Stena Impero into port with its 23-strong crew, and Iranian
The route taken by the British oil tanker Stena Impero which is believed to have been captured in Iranian waters while en route to Saudi Arabia.
US Marine Corps General Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr. (C-L), commander of the US Central Command (CENTCOM), and Lieutenant General Fahd bin Turki bin Abdulaziz al-Saud (C), commander of the Saudi-led coalition forces in Yemen, are shown by coalition spokesman Colonel Turki bin Saleh al-Malki (C-R). McKenzie pledged on July 18 to work "aggressively" to ensure maritime safety in strategic Gulf waters after a spate of attacks blamed on Iran.
An MV-22 Osprey aircraft takes off on the deck of the USS Boxer (LHD-4) in the Arabian Sea off Oman, on July 17.
Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif speaks as he attends a high-level political forum on sustainable development on July 17, at the UN Headquarters in New York.
This undated photo provided by Iranian state television's English-language service, Press TV, shows the Panamanian-flagged oil tanker MT Riah surrounded by Iranian Revolutionary Guard vessels.
An MV-22 Osprey aircraft lands on the deck of USS Abraham Lincoln the Gulf of Oman near the Strait of Hormuz, on July 15.
Radar is seen on the monitoring tower of USS Boxer (LHD-4) in the Arabian Sea off Oman, on July 16.
U.S. Representative Seth Moulton (D-MA) speaks in favor of inclusion of House Amendment #270 to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), aimed at preventing war with Iran, at the Capitol in Washington, DC, on July 10.
A warship belonging to the British Navy, allegedly sent to the Strait of Hormuz, is seen passing through the Bosphorus in Istanbul, Turkey, on July 12.
Supertanker Grace 1 off the coast of Gibraltar on July 6. Iran demanded on July 5 that Britain immediately release the tanker it had detained, accusing it of acting at the bidding of the United States. Authorities in Gibraltar, a British overseas territory on Spain's southern tip at the western entrance to the Mediterranean, said they suspected the tanker was carrying crude oil to Syria in violation of EU sanctions.
British soldiers are seen during an operation involving the oil supertanker Grace 1.
Oil supertanker Grace 1 is seen in waters of the British overseas territory of Gibraltar, historically claimed by Spain, on July 4.
(L to R) Iran's Atomic Energy Organization spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi, government spokesman Ali Rabiei, and Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi give a joint press conference at the presidential headquarters in Tehran on July 7. Iran said it would begin enriching uranium beyond a 3.67 percent cap set by a landmark nuclear deal "in a few hours", the Islamic republic's atomic energy organisation spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi said on July 7.
Even as Tensions With Iran Rise Over Seized Ship, U.K. Stays ‘Committed’ to Nuclear Deal
LONDON — Britain took new steps to distance itself from the Trump administration’s escalating confrontation with Iran, even while pushing for the release of an oil tanker seized by Tehran three days earlier. British efforts to bolster maritime security in the Persian Gulf “will not be part of the U.S. maximum pressure policy on Iran,” Foreign Minister Jeremy Hunt said after an emergency cabinet meeting about the tanker. Mr.
WASHINGTON — President Trump was grousing about John R. Bolton , his national security adviser , at his Florida club not long ago. Guests heard the president complaining about the advice he was getting and wondering if Mr. Bolton was taking him down a path he did not want to go.
Trump has replaced his thoughtful national security advisor with a belligerent TV pundit, says Guardian editor and writer David Shariatmadari. But even if he sticks to that somewhat pat promise, we can still expect him to exert influence over the president’ s thinking, particularly on Iran , where the
A British Royal Navy ship (L) patrols near supertanker Grace 1 suspected of carrying crude oil to Syria in violation of EU sanctions after it was detained off the coast of Gibraltar on July 4. Iran demanded on July 5, that Britain immediately release the tanker, accusing it of acting at the bidding of the United States.
Aircraft maneuver into position for an Independence Day air power demonstration on the flight deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea on July 4. The USS Abraham Lincoln was rushed to the Mideast amid tensions between the U.S. and Iran as its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers unravels.
Acting U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Jonathan Cohen addresses the U.N. Security Council briefing on implementation of the resolution that endorsed the Iran nuclear deal at the United Nations headquarters in New York, June 26.
Iran's Ambassador to the United Nations (UN) Majid Takht Ravanchi delivers a speech during the U.N. Security Council on implementation of the resolution that endorsed the Iran nuclear deal at the United Nations headquarters on June 26.
U.S. Air Force aircraft taxi to take-off from Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Virginia on June 25.
A U.S. Air Force (USAF) pilot from the 4th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron enters the cockpit of an F-35A Lightning II before Exercise Tri-Lightning, at Al Dhafra Air Base, United Arab Emirates, June 25.
Iranian president Hassan Rouhani speaks during the cabinet meeting in Tehran, on June 26. Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman, Abbas Mousavi, said in a tweet that the newly announced sanctions meant that the channel of diplomacy has been closed forever.
A handout photo made available by the supreme leader office shows Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaking during a meeting with Iranian judiciary officials in Tehran, on June 26. According to reports, Khamenei said his country will 'never retreat' in the face of US sanctions, two days after US President Donald Trump signed an executive order for additional sanctions against Iran and its leadership.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani speaks in a meeting with the Health Ministry officials, in Tehran, Iran on June 25. Iran on Tuesday sharply criticized new U.S. sanctions targeting the Islamic Republic's supreme leader and other top officials.
President Donald Trump displays an executive order imposing fresh sanctions on Iran in the Oval Office of the White House, on June 24.
US National Security Advisor John Bolton (R) speaks next to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) and Nikolai Patrushev (C), Russian Secretary of the Security Council, during a press conference of the trilateral meeting of the US, Russian and Israeli national security advisers in Jerusalem, Israel on June 25. The meeting is a first-ever trilateral summit between the Russian, Israeli and American national security advisers with Nikolai Patrushev Russian Secretary of the Security Council, Meir Ben Shabbat, Israeli Security adviser and John Bolton, US National Security Advisor. the trilateral summit talks focuses on Iran, Syria and regional issues.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (L) meets with Mohamed ben Zayed Al-Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, in Abu Dhabi, UAE on June 24. The United States, Britain, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have jointly called for "diplomatic solutions" to ease soaring tensions with Iran.
Iran's ambassador to the United Nations Majid Takht-Ravanchi holds up a picture as he addresses the media at the Security Council stakeout area before the start of the UN Security Council meeting on the situation in Iran at United Nations Headquarters in New York, on June 24.
Seated under a portrait of the Saudi monarch, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (L) meets with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at Al Salam Palace in the Red Sea port of Jeddah on June 24. - Pompeo arrived Monday in Saudi Arabia for talks on coordinating with the close ally amid mounting tensions with Iran.
Iranian Judiciary chief Ebrahim Rais (C) attends a meeting with foreign ambassadors in Iran in the Islamic republic's capital Tehran on June 24. - Iran denied the same day it was hit by a US cyber attack as Washington was due to tighten sanctions on Tehran in a standoff sparked by the US withdrawal from a nuclear deal.
President Donald Trump walks off Marine One at the White House after spending the weekend at Camp David on June 23, in Washington, DC. President Donald Trump warned the United States may launch a devastating military attack on Iran unless it comes to the negotiating table and drops its bid to develop nuclear weapons.
Protesters gather in front of the White House to speak out against a possible war with Iran on June 23, in Washington, DC. U.S. President Donald Trump said he almost launched a retaliatory strike after it was alleged that Iran shot down an unmanned U.S. drone last week, in a tweet he said he called off the attack after learning the number of potential casualties.
President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on June 20 in Washington. Trump declared that "Iran made a very big mistake" in shooting down a U.S. drone but suggested it was an accident rather than a strategic error.
Crew of seized British-flagged tanker allowed to talk to families
The owner of the British-flagged tanker seized by Iran has said the crew members are safe and well, and have been allowed to talk to their families. The Stena Impero tanker was seized last Friday by Iranian forces as it was passing through Omani waters in the Strait of Hormuz. In a statement, the CEO of Stena Bulk, Erik Hanell, said: "Contact continues between the crew of the Stena Impero and the company, and all those on board are reported to be safe and well under the circumstances.
But Bolton falls into an entirely different category of dangerous uber-hawk. Fifteen years ago, Bolton championed the Iraq War, and, to this day, he As the nuclear crisis with North Korea enters a critical period, Trump ’ s choice of Bolton as national security advisor dims the prospect of reaching a
Donald Trump ’ s national security adviser is stoking tensions with North Korea, Iran and Venezuela, in line with decades of taking the most hawkish position on any given issue.
A series of tweets written by President Donald Trump regarding a retaliatory attack on Iran are displayed on a computer screen in New York, on June 21.
General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, Iran's Head of the Revolutionary Guard's aerospace division, speaks to media next to debris from a downed US drone reportedly recovered within Iran's territorial waters and put on display by the Revolutionary Guard in the capital Tehran on June 21.
Protesters hold signs spelling out, "No War," outside the White House, on June 20 in Washington, after President Trump tweeted that "Iran made a very big mistake" by shooting down a US surveillance drone over the Strait of Hormuz in Iran.
This map provided by the Department of Defense shows the site where they say a U.S. Navy RQ-4 drone was shot down. The Department of Defense says the drone was flying over the Gulf of Oman and the Strait of Hormuz on a surveillance mission in international airspace in the vicinity of recent IRGC maritime attacks when it was shot down by an IRGC surface to air missile fired from a launch site in the vicinity of Goruk, Iran.
A still image from surveillance video provided by the U.S. military shows what they say is a drone being shot down over the Strait of Hormuz on June 20.
U.S. Air Force maintainers prepare a military drone RQ-4A Global Hawk for takeoff at an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia. Picture taken on Dec. 2, 2010.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is seen near a "3 Khordad" system which was allegedly been used to shoot down a U.S. military drone, according to news agency Fars, in this undated handout picture.
Journalists take pictures of a magnet the U.S. Navy says came from a limpet mine that didn't explode on a Japanese-owned oil tanker at a 5th Fleet base, during a trip organized by the Navy for journalists, near Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, on June 19.
A picture taken during a guided tour by the US Navy (NAVCENT) shows the Japanese oil tanker Kokuka Courageous off the port of the Gulf emirate of Fujairah on June 19.
This image released by the U.S. Department of Defense on June 17, and taken from a U.S. Navy helicopter, shows what the Navy says are members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy removing an unexploded limpet mine from the M/T Kokuka Courageous.
Crew members of the Kokuka Courageous oil tanker receive medical attention from military personnel aboard missile destroyer USS Bainbridge, at sea, June 13.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks from the State Department briefing room on June 13, in Washington, DC. Pompeo said, "It is the assessment of the U.S. government that Iran is responsible for today's attacks in the Gulf of Oman. These attacks are a threat to international peace and security, a blatant assault on the freedom of navigation, and an unacceptable escalation of tension by Iran."
This picture, obtained by AFP from Iranian News Agency ISNA on June 13, reportedly shows fire and smoke billowing from a tanker said to have been attacked in the waters of the Gulf of Oman.
U.S. and U.K. divide increases on Iran
Britain's refusal to go along with the Trump administration's fiery approach to recent Iranian aggression has experts and lawmakers concerned about the state of the "special relationship" between two historically close allies. The United Kingdom on Monday shunned the United States' call for a multi-nation effort to protect non-Iranian ships in the Persian Gulf, despite the fact that the country had its own oil tanker seized in the region.
National security adviser doubled down on the tweet, upping pressure on Iran , while Trump ’ s tone Donald Trump plans to make Iran pay a price few countries have ever paid before, according to the But Bolton , a well-known hawk on Iran , told reporters in Washington: “I spoke to the president over
5 facts about John Bolton , Trump ' s new national security adviser . Several commentators have expressed concern that Bolton 's bellicose approach will only encourage Trump ' s more aggressive foreign policy instincts and could help lead the United States into what might be otherwise avoidable
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani (L) shakes hands with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, during a welcoming ceremony at the Saadabad Palace in the capital Tehran on June 12. Abe arrived in Tehran on June 12 for a rare diplomatic mission, hoping to defuse tensions between the Islamic republic and Tokyo's ally Washington.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks during a media briefing at the State Department June 10, in Washington, D.C. Secretary Pompeo discussed topics including the latest development on tension with Iran.
This undated photograph from the United Arab Emirates' Mission to the United Nations released Thursday, June 6, shows a diver investigating the damage done to the Saudi-owned oil tanker Al Marzoqah off the coast of Fujairah, United Arab Emirates. A joint statement released Thursday by Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Norway said the damage done to the four oil tankers off the UAE likely came from limpet mines placed by a "state actor" amid U.S. and Saudi allegations Iran carried out the sabotage. Iran has denied being involved amid heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington.
The USS Abraham Lincoln carrier and a U.S. Air Force B-52H Stratofortress, conduct joint exercises in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility in Arabian sea on June 1.
President Trump talks to journalists as he departs the White House for a campaign rally in Pennsylvania on May 20 in Washington, DC. On his way to Montoursville, Pennsylvania, Trump said that Iran does not currently pose a direct threat to the United States.
Iran Links British Seizure of Oil Tanker to Ailing Nuclear Deal
Iran for the first time tied the British seizure of an Iranian oil tanker to the ailing nuclear deal on Sunday, calling it illegal and a violation of the agreement.
Trump ' s closest advisers , such as national security adviser John Bolton , are " trying to convince" Trump to start a "We should remind ourselves that this is a TOTALLY UNNECESSARY CRISIS !" Trump campaigned on abolishing it. "We're only here cuz Trump quit the deal and put Bolton in
John Bolton , President Trump ' s national security advisor , doubles down on Trump ' s all-caps tweet threat sent to the Iranian regime. “I spoke to the President over the last several days, and President Trump told me that if Iran does anything at all to the negative, they will pay a price like few countries
© Provided by Associated Newspapers Limited National Security Advisor John Bolton has repeatedly called for regime change in Tehran Appearing on Sky's Sophy Ridge on Sunday this morning Mr Ellwood said the UK had three or four warships going through 100 nautical miles of waterway every day, adding: 'It is impossible simply to escort each individual vessel.'
Former Tory party leader Iain Duncan Smith claimed this morning that the UK had turned down an offer of US military help to protect vessels.
'I think there are genuine questions to be raised right now about the British Government's behaviour, I say this as a supporter of the Government,' he told the Andrew Marr Show.
'They were not taken up at the point and I want to know why, with only one ship as it appears there, and no accelerated attempt at assets.
'This is a major failure and the Government has to answer that charge very quickly indeed.'
Dominic Raab rules out ‘barter’ over Iranian tanker.
Britain’s new foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, has said there will be no “barter” over the UK-flagged oil tanker seized by Iran, as the stand-off over the two countries’ seizure of each other’s vessels continues.
Dominic Raab rules out ‘barter’ over Iranian... 
