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U.K. Says Boats Were 1.7 Miles Inside Iraqi Waters
March 28 (Bloomberg) -- The U.K. Ministry of Defence, stepping up pressure on Iran to return 15 detained sailors and Marines, released evidence suggesting British boats were 1.7 nautical miles inside Iraq when they were seized. Vice Admiral Charles Style said Iran's navy raided Britain's boats on the Iraqi side of the Shatt al-Arab waterway dividing the two countries on March 23. He said GPS navigation data showed the position of Britain's boats, adding that Iranian officials have given two separate accounts of the location of the vessels. ``It is hard to understand a legitimate reason for the change of coordinates,'' Style said at a briefing in London today. The boats, he said, were about their ``legal business in Iraqi waters under a United Nations'' resolution. The comments marked an escalation in the diplomatic effort, bringing details of the British argument with Iran into the public. Prime Minister Tony Blair, who has attempted to defuse the situation by giving time for private discussions between British and Iranian officials, today told Parliament that the capture of the Britons was ``wrong and completely illegal.'' ``We had hoped to see their immediate release. It is now time to ratchet up the pressure,'' Blair said. Iran rejected the British assertions, saying the boats were half a kilometer (0.3 of a mile) inside Iranian waters. A statement from the Iranian embassy in London said the sailors and Marines were in good condition and that an investigation into the matter was underway. ``We are confident that Iranian and British governments are capable of resolving this security case through their close contacts and cooperation'' in a way that would prevent the ``reoccurrence of such incidents in the area,'' the embassy said. ``We are of the belief that this legal and technical issue has no link to any other issues.'' Yesterday, Iran's Foreign Ministry raised hopes that the crisis could be resolved peacefully. ``The issue will be solved in a calm atmosphere,'' said the ministry's spokesman, Mohammad Ali Hosseini. ``We cannot predict how long it will take.'' British diplomats in Tehran will be able to contact the 15 sailors and Marines after an ``initial phase of inquiry,'' Hosseini was quoted as saying by the official Islamic Republic News Agency yesterday. Britain has avoided threatening military action or increased economic sanctions against Iran because of the incident. Blair's stance, backed by opposition politicians, reflects his limited options to defuse the dispute and the lessons learned from previous incidents with Iran. President Jimmy Carter's effort to free 52 Americans held in Tehran in 1980 cost the lives of eight Marines and failed to recover any hostages. Posted by: Steve 2007-03-28 |
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