Iran has released nine of 12 sailors who were onboard the Panama-flagged vessel, MT Riah, which was detained by the Iran Coast Guard on July 13 on suspicion that it was carrying Iranian oil. Of course, many more Indian sailors are still detained aboard the UK-flagged vessel, Stena Impero, which Iran is obviously holding as a bargaining chip for its own oil tanker that was detained off Gibraltar by Britain. It is a good sign the tensions that were running high two weeks ago are seen to be cooling off. The lives of Indians sailing in hazardous zones of the world’s waters or working in troubled countries are precious and our diplomats have been working overtime to extract assurances about their safety as well as securing the release of mariners who have unwittingly become collateral in Iran’s conflict with the West. India has also been given consular access to the sailors detained on the UK-flagged vessel.
As India’s ties with Iran are very good, it should be possible to get the remaining sailors back safely too though that would be dependent on when Iran and Britain strike a deal over the exchange of vessels. Since Boris Johnson has been Prime Minister of Britain only for a few days now, he may not yet have put together a strategy on the matter nor had time to form a diplomatic team to negotiate and find a peaceful solution to the oil tankers crisis. It might help a resolution of the issue that the US President, Donald Trump, may be preoccupied with other things like using the funds for the “Mexican Wall” the US Supreme Court has released by lifting a stay. India would still be the neutral country most suited to mediate in the tanker dispute and help cool tempers even as its detained sailors benefit from the interaction.
