Corbyn urges UK to reduce tensions in Persian Gulf following tankers incident
The UK’s opposition Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, has urged London to try to reduce tensions in the Persian Gulf following the oil tankers incident in the Sea of Oman.
The United States has blamed Iran for attacks on two oil tankers in the Sea of Oman on Thursday and Britain followed suit with Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, accusing Tehran of “destabilizing” the region.
“These latest attacks build on a pattern of destabilizing Iranian behavior and pose a serious danger to the region,” Hunt said in a statement.
Few hours later, however, Corbyn criticized the British government for making accusations against Iran “without credible evidence.”
Britain should act to ease tensions in the Gulf, not fuel a military escalation that began with US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear agreement. Without credible evidence about the tanker attacks, the government’s rhetoric will only increase the threat of war.
— Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) June 14, 2019
Early on Friday, Iran warned the US to stop playing a blame game through the "suspicious" attacks, describing the American behavior as "worrying."
The stern warning by Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi Friday came after US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo offhandedly blamed Tehran for the attacks.
"The suspicious nature of incidents for oil tankers is not a joke. It is not only not funny, but it is also worrying and alarming," Mousavi said in a statement.
The attacks on the Marshal Islands-flagged Front Altair and the Panama-flagged Japanese-owned Kokuka Courageous sent shock waves through the world which was awaiting the news of a meeting between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei in Tehran.
Pompeo said immediately, “It is the assessment of the United States government that the Islamic Republic of Iran is responsible for the attacks that occurred in the Gulf of Oman today.”
Russia and China, however, warned against reaching hasty conclusions, arguing that a thorough investigation should be carried out into the incident.
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