{"id":127734,"date":"2019-09-05T13:47:56","date_gmt":"2019-09-05T17:47:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/?p=127734"},"modified":"2019-09-05T13:49:00","modified_gmt":"2019-09-05T17:49:00","slug":"trump-administration-resorts-to-outright-blackmail-to-iranian-ship-captain-to-hand-over-oil-tanker","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/?p=127734","title":{"rendered":"Trump Administration Outright Bribes Iranian Ship Captain to Hand Over Oil Tanker"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>US Offers Iranian Tanker Captain Millions To Hand Over Ship<\/h1>\n<p>ZeroHedge.com<\/p>\n<p>The United States offered millions of dollars to the captain of an Iranian oil tanker currently at the center of a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/news\/2019-09-04\/captain-controversial-iranian-tanker-wants-out-report\">diplomatic spat<\/a>, according to the\u00a0<em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ft.com\/content\/20188064-cefb-11e9-99a4-b5ded7a7fe3f\">Financial Times<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>and confirmed to the\u00a0<em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-middle-east-49589075\">A<\/a>FP<\/em>\u00a0by\u00a0the US state department.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/s3\/files\/inline-images\/iranship.JPG?itok=1Kezd2_I\" data-image-external-href=\"\" data-image-href=\"\/s3\/files\/inline-images\/iranship.JPG?itok=1Kezd2_I\" data-link-option=\"0\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/zh-prod-1cc738ca-7d3b-4a72-b792-20bd8d8fa069.storage.googleapis.com\/s3fs-public\/styles\/inline_image_desktop\/public\/inline-images\/iranship.JPG?itok=itQbZAxC 1x\" type=\"image\/jpeg\" media=\"all and (min-width: 1280px)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/zh-prod-1cc738ca-7d3b-4a72-b792-20bd8d8fa069.storage.googleapis.com\/s3fs-public\/styles\/inline_image_desktop\/public\/inline-images\/iranship.JPG?itok=itQbZAxC 1x\" type=\"image\/jpeg\" media=\"all and (min-width: 480px)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/zh-prod-1cc738ca-7d3b-4a72-b792-20bd8d8fa069.storage.googleapis.com\/s3fs-public\/styles\/inline_image_desktop\/public\/inline-images\/iranship.JPG?itok=itQbZAxC 1x, https:\/\/zh-prod-1cc738ca-7d3b-4a72-b792-20bd8d8fa069.storage.googleapis.com\/s3fs-public\/styles\/inline_image_desktop\/public\/inline-images\/iranship.JPG?itok=itQbZAxC 2x\" type=\"image\/jpeg\" media=\"all and (min-width: 1024px)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/zh-prod-1cc738ca-7d3b-4a72-b792-20bd8d8fa069.storage.googleapis.com\/s3fs-public\/styles\/inline_image_desktop\/public\/inline-images\/iranship.JPG?itok=itQbZAxC 1x\" type=\"image\/jpeg\" media=\"all and (min-width: 768px)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/zh-prod-1cc738ca-7d3b-4a72-b792-20bd8d8fa069.storage.googleapis.com\/s3fs-public\/styles\/inline_image_mobile\/public\/inline-images\/iranship.JPG?itok=1Kezd2_I 1x\" type=\"image\/jpeg\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/zh-prod-1cc738ca-7d3b-4a72-b792-20bd8d8fa069.storage.googleapis.com\/s3fs-public\/inline-images\/iranship.JPG\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"305\" data-entity-type=\"file\" data-entity-uuid=\"de652661-0d8d-4183-8de1-eabfcef72310\" data-responsive-image-style=\"inline_images\" \/><\/picture><\/a><\/p>\n<p>US special representative to Iran, Brian Hook, emailed the captain of the Adrian Darya 1 about sailing the vessel to a country willing to impound it on behalf of the Trump administration.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I am writing with good news,&#8221; reads the email from Hook to\u00a0captain Akhilesh Kuma, after which Hook offered to pay millions of dollars if he were to turn over the ship. Kuma did not respond.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We have conducted extensive outreach to several ship captains as well as shipping companies,&#8221; a state department spokeswoman told\u00a0<i>AFP<\/i>.<\/p>\n<aside id=\"my_spring1\"><\/aside>\n<p>Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif responded to the report by accusing the US of &#8220;outright blackmail,&#8221; calling the Trump administration &#8220;B Team Gangsters&#8221; in a hashtag.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Having failed at piracy, the US resorts to outright blackmail\u2014deliver us Iran\u2019s oil and receive several million dollars or be sanctioned yourself.<\/p>\n<p>Sounds very similar to the Oval Office invitation I received a few weeks back.<\/p>\n<p>It is becoming a pattern.<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/BTeamGangsters?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#BTeamGangsters<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/B1oQTLghWZ\">pic.twitter.com\/B1oQTLghWZ<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Javad Zarif (@JZarif) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/JZarif\/status\/1169289573417082882?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">September 4, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>The current whereabouts of the Iranian oil tanker are unknown amid reports that it may have &#8216;<a href=\"https:\/\/uk.reuters.com\/article\/uk-mideast-iran-tanker\/iranian-tanker-adrian-darya-1-goes-dark-off-syria-idUKKCN1VO0XL\">gone dark<\/a>&#8216; &#8211; turning off its transponder while in the Mediterranean west of Syria on Tuesday.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>The Adrian Darya 1, previously known as Grace 1, was\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/uk-48865030\">detained by British authorities in Gibraltar<\/a>\u00a0on 4 July<strong>\u00a0after it was suspected of moving oil to Syria in breach of EU sanctions.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/uk-49362182\">It was released<\/a>\u00a0on 15 August after Iran gave assurances it would not discharge its cargo in Syria &#8211; despite the last-minute US effort to prevent its release.<\/p>\n<p>Tracking websites indicate the ship is currently in the eastern Mediterranean, although it has reportedly turned off its signalling device.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/av\/embed\/p07kn6l0\/49589075\" width=\"400\" height=\"500\" frameborder=\"0\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>On Wednesday the seven of the ship&#8217;s crew of 23 left the vessel, while the remaining crew members are thought to be with the ship near Iran&#8217;s southern port of Bandar Abbas.<\/p>\n<p>Last week the US Treasury Department blacklisted the tanker\u00a0<strong>&#8211; accusing it of transporting 2.1 million barrels of Iranian crude oil for the benefit of Iran&#8217;s revolutionary guard.\u00a0<\/strong>On Wednesday, the Trump administration offered $15 million to anyone who could disrupt an Iranian shipping network used to sell oil.<\/p>\n<p>___<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/news\/2019-09-05\/us-offers-iranian-tanker-captain-millions-hand-over-ship\">https:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/news\/2019-09-05\/us-offers-iranian-tanker-captain-millions-hand-over-ship<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>US Offers Iranian Tanker Captain Millions To Hand Over Ship ZeroHedge.com The United States offered millions of dollars to the captain of an Iranian oil tanker currently at the center of a\u00a0diplomatic spat, according to the\u00a0Financial Times\u00a0and confirmed to the\u00a0AFP\u00a0by\u00a0the &hellip; 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