Iran rejects US accusation of role in Indian Ocean tanker attack

Speaking to reporters at a weekly press conference on Monday, Kanaani refuted the Pentagon’s story that a drone launched from Iran struck a chemical tanker in the Indian Ocean early on Saturday.

“The accusations leveled by the US are endless,” he said, hitting back at the US government as the main culprit for the war crimes against Gaza and the main party responsible for the Israeli strikes on Palestinians.

“The US is basically in no position to bring accusations against other sides. We reject those allegations,” Kanaani stated.

The spokesman added such accusations are made with the purpose of pointing the blame on others and covering up Washington’s blatant support for the Zionist regime. “The US government has attracted the world nations’ public hatred with its measures and support for the Israeli regime.”

The spokesman further described Iran as a main country ensuring the security of international maritime routes, saying the Islamic Republic has always acted responsibly and played a significant role in the security of maritime industry and international trade.

A Pentagon spokesperson alleged on Sunday that a one-way attack drone fired from Iran has struck the Liberia-flagged, Japanese-owned, and Netherlands-operated chemical tanker in the Indian Ocean, 200 nautical miles from the coast of India.

Kanaani also said that the United Kingdom is not legally and morally in a position to level accusations against Iran and other regional states.

“The Israeli regime’s officials have named UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron as their best friend; thus, the UK and this politician say things that the Israeli regime expects them to.”

Regarding the Gaza war, he added the UK is considered an accomplice, he said, arguing that the role of the European country in establishing the fake regime and providing it, which is the most hated terrorist entity in the region, with unlimited support, as well as London’s stance in the last two months are examples of ignoring their responsibility, so they should be held accountable for their past and recent wrongdoings.

The spokesperson also decried a recent joint statement from several Arab countries and Russia about three Iranian islands in the Persian Gulf as an action against Iran’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The contents of the joint statement of the 6th Arab-Russian Cooperation Forum about the three Iranian islands in the Persian Gulf amount to action against Iran’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and are unacceptable from Tehran’s viewpoint, Kanaani said.

Slamming those claims as a violation of international law on the respect for the sovereignty of nations, the spokesman added, “We’ve (always) had and (still) have no qualms about Iran’s territorial integrity in dealing with any side. Iran has rejected the contents of that statement and has voiced its protest in blunt terms.”

The spokesman emphasized that the Foreign Ministry takes serious and appropriate diplomatic measures and reactions when it comes to defending the country’s national interests and territorial integrity.

In the final statement of the 6th Arab-Russian Cooperation Forum, held in the southern Moroccan city of Marrakech on December 20, the participants supported peaceful solutions and initiatives to resolve what they called the conflict on the three islands through bilateral negotiations or the International Court of Justice.

The Foreign Ministry of Iran has condemned the “baseless contents” of the statement, saying those three islands are an inseparable part of Iran’s national territory and will belong to Iran forever.