Mohammad Javad Zarif News

Iran will destroy U.S. warships if its security is threatened in the Gulf, the head of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards told state TV on Thursday, a day after U.S. President Donald Trump warned Tehran over "harassment" of U.S. vessels."I have ordered our naval forces to destroy any American terrorist force in the Persian Gulf that threatens security of Iran's military or non-military ships," Major General Hossein Salami said. "Security of the Persian Gulf is part of Iran's strategic priorities."Trump said on Wednesday he had instructed the U.S.

Sweden has received "very strong indications" that a British oil tanker seized last month by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz is to be released soon, Swedish public service broadcaster SVT reported on Thursday, citing sources within Sweden's foreign ministry.The Stena Impero, British-owned but operated by Swedish company Stena Bulk, was captured by Iran's Revolutionary Guards on July 19 after passing through the strait at the mouth of the Gulf.Iran's foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, visited Sweden earlier this week for talks with Sweden's foreign minister Margot Wallstrom. He also met Erik Hanell, chief executive of Stena Bulk.The vessel is expected to be released within a few days…

The owner of a British-flagged tanker detained in Iran has met the country's foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, to make the case for the ship and its crew to be released.Erik Hanell, chief executive of Stena Bulk, met Zarif in Stockholm on Aug. 20 to ask for the Stena Impero to be released. It was detained by Tehran on July 19, two weeks after Britain detained an Iranian tanker off the territory of Gibraltar. That ship was released this week."A constructive dialogue was had and we shared information around the case," Hanell said in a statement on Wednesday. "It was important for us to emphasize the importance of the release of the 23 crew ... Also for the release of the Swedish owned vessel Stena Impero.(Reporting by Kate Holton and Guy Faulconbridge; editing by Stephen Addison)

Australia will join the United States in a security mission to protect merchant vessels travelling through key Middle East waterways after Iran seized a British-flagged vessel, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Wednesday.Foremost among the areas to be patrolled is the Strait of Hormuz, between Oman and Iran, through which about one-fifth of the world's seaborne crude flows out of the Gulf.Global commodity trading has been rocked in recent months by the seizure of the British tanker and a series of attacks on international merchant vessels that the U.S. and Britain have blamed on Iran, though it denies involvement. Britain this month became the first U.S.

If Iran's oil exports are cut to zero, international waterways will not have the same security as before, its president said on Wednesday, cautioning Washington against upping pressure on Tehran in an angry confrontation between the longtime foes.The comment by President Hassan Rouhani coincided with a remark by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif that Tehran might act "unpredictably" in response to "unpredictable" U.S. policies under President Donald Trump."World powers know that in the case that oil is completely sanctioned and Iran's oil exports are brought down to zero…

War with Iran is the mother of all wars, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Tuesday in a speech broadcast live on state TV, warning once again that shipping might not be safe in the Strait of Hormuz oil waterway.Tensions have risen between Iran and the West since last year when the United States pulled out of an international agreement which curbed the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program in return for an easing of economic sanctions on Iran."Peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, war with Iran is the mother of all wars," Rouhani said at the Foreign Ministry in a speech which also praised Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif after the United States imposed sanctions on him on July 31.If the United States wants to have negotiations with Iran then it must lift all sanctions…

Britain on Monday joined the United States in a maritime security mission in the Gulf to protect merchant vessels travelling through the Strait of Hormuz after Iran seized a British-flagged vessel.British officials stressed that there was no change to London's policy on Iran but joining the United States is the most significant non-Brexit foreign policy move to date of Prime Minister Boris Johnson's 12-day-old government.Just two weeks ago, Britain was calling for a European-led naval mission. Now, it has joined what it said was a U.S.-led "international maritime security mission".

Iran will no longer turn a blind eye to "maritime offences" in the Gulf, its foreign minister said on Monday, a day after it seized an Iraqi oil tanker there that it accused of smuggling fuel.Revolutionary Guards seized the tanker and its seven crew near Iran's Farsi Island north of the Strait of Hormuz, state media reported, in show of power amid heightened tension with the West that minister Mohammad Javad Zarif blamed U.S. authorities for fomenting."Iran used to forgo some maritime offences in ... (the) Gulf but will never close (its) eyes anymore," Zarif told a news conference.He criticized U.S. sanctions imposed on him on Wednesday, saying Washington had closed the door to diplomacy over Iran's 2015 nuclear deal, which U.S.

Britain says it fended off Iranian attempt to block its oil tankerThree Iranian vessels tried to block a British-owned tanker passing through the strait that controls the flow of Middle East oil to the world, but backed off when confronted by a Royal Navy warship, Britain said on Thursday.A week after Britain seized an Iranian tanker accused of violating sanctions on Syria, London said the British Heritage, operated by oil company BP, had been approached in the Strait of Hormuz…

Britain does not intend to escort every British-flagged merchant vessel through the Strait of Hormuz, a security source said on Thursday, after a Royal Navy warship had to stop three Iranian vessels from blocking the passage of a BP-operated tanker.The source said London would be resolute in defending its maritime interests in the Gulf but it does not want to escalate the situation with Iran.Exactly a week after Britain seized an Iranian tanker in Gibraltar accused of violating sanctions on Syria…

Three Iranian vessels tried to block a BP-operated tanker passing through the Strait of Hormuz but backed off when confronted by a Royal Navy warship, the UK government said on Thursday.Britain urged Iran to "de-escalate the situation in the region" after the British Heritage, a Suezmax oil tanker operated by BP under an Isle of Man flag, was approached."HMS Montrose was forced to position herself between the Iranian vessels and British Heritage and issue verbal warnings to the Iranian vessels…

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on Friday for an independent investigation to establish the facts and who was responsible for attacks on two oil tankers this week in the Gulf of Oman.The United States blamed Iran for the attacks on Thursday, a charge Tehran rejected. Amid the rising tensions, Guterres said he was available to mediate if the parties agreed, however he added that "at the present moment we don't see a mechanism of dialogue possible to be in place."Tehran and Washington have both said they have no interest in starting a war, but this has done little to assuage concerns that the two arch foes could stumble into a conflict.

Two oil tankers were attacked in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday, leaving one ablaze and both adrift, shipping firms said, driving oil prices as much as 4% higher over worries about Middle East supplies.The Front Altair, carrying petrochemical feedstock, was on fire in waters between Gulf Arab states and Iran after an explosion that a source blamed on a magnetic mine. The Norwegian owner said its crew were safe.A second Japanese-owned tanker was abandoned after being hit by a suspected torpedo, the firm that chartered the ship said.

International Maritime Organization (IMO) Secretary-General Kitack Lim visited the Islamic Republic of Iran to participate  in a ceremony to commemorate seafarers who lost their lives aboard the Iranian-owned oil tanker Sanchi earlier this year.He visited Iran also to participate in the country's national celebration of World Maritime Day (8 September) and met met the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Mohammad Javad Zarif.Early this year, he issued a statement sympathizing with victims of Iranian vessel collision near China shore.Sanchi, an Iranian tanker carrying condensates collided with a Chinese freight ship in East China coast on January 6.

A Chinese salvage team recovered two bodies on Saturday from a stricken Iranian oil tanker, that was still blazing a week after it caught fire and was left adrift following a collision in the East China Sea, state news agency Xinhua reported. The four members of the salvage team wore respirators to board the “Sanchi”, where they found the two bodies on the deck. They tried to get to the living quarters but were driven back by temperatures on the burning ship of around 89 Celsius (192 Fahrenheit), Xinhua said.

Iran released 10 U.S. sailors on Wednesday after holding them overnight, bringing a swift end to an incident that had rattled nerves days ahead of the expected implementation of a landmark nuclear accord between Tehran and world powers. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it had freed the sailors after determining they had entered Iranian territorial waters by mistake. The sailors had been detained aboard two U.S. Navy patrol boats in the Gulf on Tuesday. "Our technical investigations showed the two U.S.

Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif discussed how to advance Yemeni peace efforts with his Omani counterpart on Tuesday, Iranian media reported, on a visit to a country that has often played a conciliatory role in Gulf conflicts. Speaking after talks in Muscat, Zarif and Omani Foreign Minister Yusuf bin Alawi also announced the two had agreed to demarcate a previously undefined stretch of maritime border, in waters including some of the world's busiest sea lanes. On Yemen, Zarif said they discussed implementing a ceasefire, setting up talks between warring factions and how to get aid in, Iran's Mehr news agency reported. "Iran and Oman want peace, security and stability in the region and have shared interests in this regard," Zarif was quoted as saying by Mehr.

Iran's foreign minister on Wednesday offered assurances that Tehran is committed to maintaining freedom of navigation in the Persian Gulf in the aftermath of the seizure of a commercial ship by Iranian forces a day earlier. "The Persian Gulf is our lifeline ... We will respect international navigation," Mohammad Javad Zarif told an audience at New York University. "For us, freedom of navigation in the Persian Gulf is a must." He added that senior foreign ministry officials and deputy foreign ministers from Iran and six powers would resume negotiations on a final nuclear deal on Thursday. He suggested the talks would take place in New York, where he is attending a review conference on the 1970 nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. (Reporting by Louis Charbonneau)

Iran and six world powers on Friday agreed to a four-month extension of negotiations on a long-term nuclear deal that would gradually end sanctions on Tehran  in exchange for curbs on its nuclear programme, diplomats close to the talks said. Iran, the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China had set a July 20 deadline to complete a long-term agreement that would resolve the decade-old dispute over Tehran's nuclear ambitions. But diplomats said they were unable to overcome significant differences on major sticking points. "We have reached an agreement to extend the talks," a senior Iranian diplomat told Reuters on condition of anonymity. Several Western diplomats echoed his remarks.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will meet Iran's foreign minister and the European Union foreign policy chief in Oman on Nov. 9-10 to discuss the Iranian nuclear issue ahead of a looming deadline for a final agreement, the U.S. State Department said on Friday. Kerry's talks in Muscat, Oman with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and the EU's Catherine Ashton are due to take place two weeks before a Nov. 24 deadline for Tehran and six major powers to reach a long-term agreement on Iran's nuclear program. The high-level gathering is one of series of meetings in the final weeks before the deadline. Before heading to Oman Ashton will meet senior foreign ministry officials from the six powers - Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States in Vienna on Nov.

The United States on Friday dismissed suggestions that Iran was exporting much more oil than it is allowed to sell under a preliminary nuclear deal with world powers and predicted that aggregate Iranian oil sales would meet targets set for Tehran. The remarks from a senior U.S. official came ahead of a new round of senior-level negotiations between Iran and the United States, Britain, France, Germany, China and Russia in Vienna on April 8-9. It will be the third round of talks this year in the Austrian capital on a long-term deal with Iran. Western sanctions for a fifth month, the latest sign that the limited sanctions relief agreed upon in November is helping Tehran sell more crude, according to sources who track tanker movements.