Dr Abdolreza Faraji Raad, referring to Iran’s seizure of a British oil tanker in the Persian Gulf, said: Germany and France should bear in mind that the UK was the initiator of this tension because it first seized a large oil tanker carrying Iranian oil in the Strait of Gibraltar.

He added: “Iran patiently waited for two weeks, resorted to diplomacy and in fact quietly tried to have its tanker released but the British brought excuses and despite promising in their phone calls to release the ship they issued a ruling by the Gibraltar Court and kept the tanker for another month, a ruling which again was the work of the British themselves.

Commenting on the reaction of the public opinion in Iran to the seizure of the Iranian oil tanker, Faraji Raad said: “Naturally, the Iranians would not tolerate such behaviour. The public opinion expected mutual action to be taken. Eventually, this reciprocal action was carried out and that too at a time that, according to news reports, the seized tanker was moving in the opposite direction and, at the same time, carried out some illegal activities in the Strait of Hormuz.”

Referring to the issuance of unilateral statements by certain European countries in Iran’s condemnation, he stated: “At least the French were expected to announce that Iran and UK would release both tankers in a reciprocal move and then identify the violator, but unfortunately they took a completely one-sided position and condemned Iran without citing the seizure of the huge ship carrying Iranian oil at Gibraltar.”

The university lecturer explaining the reasons for the hostile actions of some European countries against Iran in connection with the seizure of the violator oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz, said: “Unfortunately, the Westerners put aside their fair-mindedness when their interests are at risk. Also, they are, so they claim, united states and always take the upper hand in dealing with other countries, especially the Middle East states. Thirdly, they consider themselves to be members of the European Union, and should ultimately show coordination in taking stances and in performance.

Meanwhile, he emphasized that their actions and condemnations not only will not affect the release of the British ship but will stir up public opinion in the world, and in particular in Iran against them. They should have helped eliminate tension and release of both the oil tankers rather than escalating the tensions, he said.

“Unfortunately, Western countries always state in words that they must reduce tensions, but in practice, they add to the tensions and are a cause of tension,” Faraji Raad noted.

He also commented on the strategic implications of Iran’s pursuit of maritime diplomacy in the issue of oil tankers. He said Iran, as it has always stated, is seeking to maintain security in the seas and oceans because it is an oil-exporting country, and for this reason, security is important for it. Among the seas and oceans of the world, the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz and then the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean are important for Iran, and over the years it has owned ships, frigates and various boats and has always tried to maintain security.

He said during Iran-Iraq war (1980-88) too Tehran strived hard not to let security be disturbed, adding: “It was the Iraqis who attacked Iran’s ships to disrupt its oil export. Unfortunately, at that time, Western countries also brought their fleets and warships to the Persian Gulf in support of their ships and Arab ships. At that time, the Americans rushed to support Kuwait, while Iran was looking for stability in the region and was not the initiator. At the same time, they carried out hostile actions against Iran and today, unfortunately, the same acts are being repeated.

Emphasizing that security is of strategic importance for Iran because it serves its interests, he said that other countries, like Western countries, are trying to maintain their security and the security of their allies.

He added: “Unfortunately, this European action has shown that all the talks about INSTEX and the creation of open economic space for Iran are unfounded, and they are seeking to put pressure on Iran to make it surrender. If this was not the case, they would have helped Iran export oil and secure the safety of oil tankers at the ports, because we have noticed that Iranian ships face difficulty in getting fuel. The set of these measures shows that they are somewhat united on putting pressure on Iran.

Faraji Raad said in anticipation of the upcoming developments: “This depends on the behaviour of the other party because Iran has never been the initiator. Today, if the UK wants to end the crisis, why not talk about the big oil tanker of Iran which is locked up in Gibraltar? They should release the Iranian oil cargo quickly because their action was illegal. It is after this action (release of Iranian oil cargo) that they can take a stand on the release of their tanker in the Persian Gulf.”