The U.S. is playing a master card in its war against the Iranian regime, offering Bribe to the captains of Iranian oil tankers to bring the blacklisted and name-changing Iranian oil vessel where it can be seized by authorities again.
Adrian Darya 1 is an escaped Iranian vessel which was earlier seized by the British officials in Gibraltar, believed to have been carrying oil to Syria, which is, according to authorities is a violation of European Union sanctions on Syria.
After 6 weeks of detention, the Gibraltar court decided to release the tanker after Iran’s written guarantee that the Grace 1 (now named as Adrian Darya 1) would not be sailing to countries on the European Union sanctions list, after departing from the port.
Washington had attempted to extend the detention period of Grace 1, making a last-minute call, on the basis of having its links to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which it has declared a terrorist organization. A call was rejected by Gibraltar court and the US blacklisted the Iranian vessel.
Officials at the U.S. State Department have contacted a number of Iranian oil tankers, informing the captains that if they sail their ships to anywhere the U.S. can assist them, they would be rewarded with up to $15 million and a guarantee for their safety.
“With this money, you can have any life you wish and be well off in old age,” Brian Hook, who heads the agency’s Iran Action Group, stated in an email to Akhilesh Kumar, captain of the Adrian Darya, the vessel loaded with two million barrels of Iranian crude that it is believed to be trying to offload in Syria, violating the commitment made with Gibraltar court.
“If you choose not to take this easy path, life will be much harder for you,” Hook added, according to a report in the Financial Times.
The offer is being made to numerous other crude oil vessel captains, too, the State Department confirmed on Thursday.
Special Representative for #Iran Brian Hook announced that the U.S. is offering rewards of up to $15 million for anyone who can help disrupt the financial operations of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Submit a tip by visiting https://t.co/mpTeFmrsJg. pic.twitter.com/H5JM4PiYau
— Department of State (@StateDept) September 5, 2019
Tehran has reacted to this Washington’s attempt of bribery by calling it the new tactic of blackmailing.
Having failed at piracy, the US resorts to outright blackmail—deliver us Iran’s oil and receive several million dollars or be sanctioned yourself.
Sounds very similar to the Oval Office invitation I received a few weeks back.
It is becoming a pattern.#BTeamGangsters pic.twitter.com/B1oQTLghWZ
— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) September 4, 2019
Adrian Darya just turned off its tracker that makes it harder to monitor its maneuverability and location.
