5 Iran tankers sailing to Venezuela amid US pressure tactics

As were you..

 

More comedy.

 

That's interesting.

So you know for a fact that Iran won't do anything that anyone outside the country would notice.

So, got a link or is this more of the BS you usually do?

 

Keep the laughs coming.

 

Really, that's the best troll you could come up with?

 

It's more effort that the substance of your posts is worth.
Keep the laughs coming.

 

While I still don't know the exact theory being used as the reports on the subject are still vague, the reports I am reading now imply a different theory behind the civil forfeiture that is being sought than what I had explained. Regardless, the 'legality' of any such action would be highly questionable, except none of the acts which the US is engaged in are constrained much by international legal norms anyway. The only difference is that here the US is trying to get a judicial order somehow to give its action some pretext of legality. Since its seems the order being sought (if granted) seems to be done on an ex parte basis, the other side (the alleged owner which is being designated as affiliated to the revolutionary guards) is not present to even challenge the arguments made. The main thing for the US is to find some pretext for any such act of piracy, but it would be an act of piracy regardless and even if a domestic court in the US were to give it a legal cover.

 

Possible, but not the most likely response IMO. We have to first, wait and see if the US tries to pull this stunt or whether it is like other reports which were published at the time of the last delivery by Iran last month, including a couple (one of FOX and the other WSJ) that the US had even managed to stop the 3rd and 4th Iranian tanker from delivering their fuel (which turned out to be a bogus report fed by frustrated US officials). But if the US tried to somehow seize the Iranian vessels, the most likely response IMO will be Iran seizing US vessels that try to pass through the Strait of Hormuz using some similar bogus pretexts as the any the US uses as cover for seizing any of the Iranian tankers.

 

Yeah, that sounds better than what I said, they prob wouldn't escalate.

 

Who does ? This line you guys are down is not making sense.

 

The US court has granted the application for the order to seize the vessel sought by the US government. Ordinarily, the 'writ' for such an order would not cover anything outside the jurisdiction of the US and such orders (ordinarily) are carried out by federal agents when a ship is found in US waters. But the US has, on quite a few occasions, used arrest warrants by its judiciary to justify taking action outside its borders using the US military. The most famous case was when it invaded Panama ostensibly to arrest the Panamanian leader, General Noriega. Other cases have seen the US go after narco-traffickers in places such as Mexico and elsewhere based on domestic judicial orders. While this order is different, as it is not criminal arrest warrant but a civil forfeiture order for a vessel, it is not outside the realm of possibility that the US will seek to 'enforce' it using its naval forces. It will also probably put pressure on any country where these tankers may have to pass through to carry out the orders. Ultimately, however, if these vessels are somehow seized, the ball will then be in Iran's court to show how it can seize US vessels which are (or aren't) willing and able to defend themselves!

 

Ooh. Ahhh. Picking on defenseless ships as an act of "retaliation". Boy, that sure scares.... someone. Somewhere. Maybe.

 

U.S. prosecutors move to seize cargo from Iranian tankers headed for Venezuela




“…their cargo included 1.2 million barrels of gasoline worth nearly $50 million”

Iran’s using third-party shippers to avert economic penalties, arranged by Mahmoud Madanipour, who is affiliated with the IRGC.

IRGC is a designated terrorist group, so the gasoline onboard those ships is forfeit.

Earlier this week Iran picked a fresh fight with the US when they issued an arrest warrant for President Trump over the killing of Qasem Soleimani who was organizing attacks on the US embassy and apparently thought he was dealing with Obama/Clinton and would get a Benghazi like non response.

 

Your perspective is off the mark. It was the US who picked the fight by killing Soleimani .. and the Trump admin has been backing away with tail between legs ever since.

 

Who is picking on defenseless ships - you talking the US picking on the Iranian tankers going to Venezuela ?

or is it double standards - R-US you are referring to.

 

This is an interesting case. As background, the US has a 'rewards for justice' program that pays up to $16 million to captain and crew of vessels like this to deliver their vessels to Iran. The US contacted the captain of the tanker that the Brits eventually released and offered him this reward to stop him from taking the tanker to Syria last year, but the captain of that tanker showed he valued his reputation over money and didn't take the US offers (or threats). It is possible the captain and crew of this vessel, on the other hand, were already compromised. Regardless, the tanker was 'hijacked' off the UAE and returned to Iran.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/tanker-hijacked-seafarers-group-us-iran-1.5650107
Tanker off U.A.E. sought by U.S. over Iran sanctions was 'hijacked,' seafarers group says

 

Sailing a shipload of oil to Venezuela is hardly a "terrorist" venture. The U.S. exports oil to Mexico, Canada, Japan, South Korea, and Brazil. I guess that means the U.S. is affiliated with terror groups ..... not that additional examples (such as oil export) are necessary for proof of that.

 

The claim that Iran's Republican Guard is a "terrorist organization" is mindless idiocy on steroids - something one might expect however from our State Sponsored Propaganda machine - be it Red or Blue.

 

U.S. “SEIZES” IRANIAN TANKERS: Why the italics? It’s a sanctions seizure, not a sailor boarding party.

Venezuela calls it psychological warfare. Yes, and lawfare, diplomatic, economic and information warfare elements as well. Think of it as an American power cocktail.

Federal prosecutors in Washington filed a civil forfeiture complaint as the clandestine sale was arranged by, Mahmoud Madanipour, who works with the terrorist organization, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps.

No military force was needed and the ships weren’t physically confiscated. U.S. officials explained the legal sanctions to the ship owners, insurers and captains and they handed over their cargo to the U.S.

Iran’s ambassador to Venezuela, Hojad Soltani, took no offense, claiming that neither the ships nor their owners were Iranian.

The ever diplomatic diplomat Soltani then soothed the trouble water with gentle healing words containing hints of the high Kissingerian prose of a true Statesman: “This is another lie and act of psychological warfare perpetrated by the U.S. propaganda machine, the terrorist #Trump cannot compensate for his humiliation and defeat by Iran using false propaganda.”

Weeks ago the ship captains, showing no awareness of their prohibited activities on behalf of terrorists, turned off their tracking devices to hide their locations.

The glorious Workers Paradise of Venezuela sits on the world’s largest crude reserves, but, because of the unreconstructed Terrorist Trump and the Yankee Imperialists, they produce very little gasoline and despite the wondrous superiority of their Marxist system, their crude production is at 70 year lows, because of the very bad Orange Man.

The proceeds from the forfeiture connected to a state sponsor of terrorism will be donated to the United States Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund (http://www.usvsst.com/).

See https://twitter.com/CENTCOM/status/1293678243552395264

 

U.S. officials said Thursday, Aug. 13, 2020, that the Trump administration has seized the cargo of four tankers it was targeting for transporting Iranian fuel to Venezuela as it steps up its campaign of maximum pressure against the two heavily sanctioned. (AP Photo/Ernesto Vargas, File)The Associated Press
Officials: U.S. seizes Iranian gas heading for Venezuela ...

abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/officials-us-seizes-iranian-oil-heading-venezuela-…


So much for Iran and what they think they can do. Been 10 days. Iran has done nothing. Because they can do nothing.

Well they can sink their mock US Aircraft carrier in their own waters even when they werent trying to sink it.

 

If ever there was a Paper Tiger, it's Iran.

 

Well, the proceeds from these tankers now go to charity, a fund set up to help those that are victims of State Sponsored terrorism.