Two Iranian ships stranded off the coast of Brazil for weeks set sail on Saturday, officials said, after a court ordered state oil giant Petrobras to fuel up the vessels. The bulk carriers had been stuck at Paranagua port in the southern state of Parana since early last month after Petrobras refused to provide fuel for fear of breaching US sanctions on Iran.
Iran has threatened to cut its imports from Brazil unless it allows the refuelling of at least two Iranian ships stranded off the Brazilian coast, a sign of the global repercussions of U.S. sanctions on the Islamic republic.
Two more Iranian bulk carriers that came to Brazil carrying urea and were expected to return home with corn could be left without enough fuel, as Brazil's Petrobras refuses to provide them with bunker fuel due to U.S. sanctions.
Prime Minister Theresa May will hold a meeting of Britain's emergencies committee on Monday to discuss Iran's seizure of a UK-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf. In one of her final important acts as prime minister before resigning on Wednesday, May will chair a meeting of Britain's COBR emergencies committee at around 10.30am (0930 GMT), her Downing Street office said.
The Council of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) has condemned recent attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and Sea of Oman at its meeting in London held from 15-19 July.
Iran's Revolutionary Guards said on Friday they had seized a British-flagged tanker in the Strait of Hormuz for breaking international maritime rules as tensions mount in the highly sensitive waterway.
An undetermined number of small Iranian boats Wednesday tried to divert the oil tanker British Heritage of the United Kingdom in the Hormuz Strait but withdrew after dissuasive action from the Royal Navy's HMR Montrose, it was reported. No shots were fired during the incident.
United States president Donald Trump targeted Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other top Iranian officials with sanctions taking a dramatic, unprecedented step to increase pressure on Iran after Tehran’s downing of an unmanned American drone.
The United States launched cyber attacks against Iranian missile control systems and a spy network after Tehran downed an American surveillance drone, according to US media reports.
United States president Donald Trump said on Friday he aborted a military strike to retaliate for Iran's downing of an unmanned US drone because it could have killed 150 people, and signalled he was open to talks with Tehran.