(B2) European military vessels blocked off Libya a Norwegian tanker chartered by the United Arab Emirates on Thursday (September 10), caught in violation of the international embargo
The German boarding team lands on the Royal Diamond 7 (credit: EUNAVFOR Med Irini)
This is the first time that a ship has been boarded in the open sea in violation of the embargo (at least by the EUNAVFOR Med Irini operation). And also the first time that the Germans carry out an 'action of force' in this context. This operation perfectly illustrates the equidistance of the new European operation which intervenes on the violations of the embargo on both sides, in the West (Sarraj camp) as in the East (Haftar camp) of Libya
An operation provided by the Hamburg
The operation took place at seven in the morning in international waters, 150 km north of the Libyan city of Derna (Cyrenaica) ". On the orders of Italian Admiral Ettore Tocci, the German frigate Hamburg then blocked " access to Libyan territorial waters "Of Royal Diamond 7, indicates the EUNAVFOR Med Irini operation in a press release. An operation carried out with the support of the Italian flagship ITS Carlo Margottini. NB: It is the German boarding team, helicoptered with the vehicle on board the Hamburg, who boarded the tanker.
The United Arab Emirates in the line of sight
This tanker — Norwegian-owned, flying the flag of the Marshall Islands (1), managed by a Singaporean company, but chartered by the United Arab Emirates — is suspected of having violated the United Nations arms embargo on Libya . The Europeans operated on the basis of information provided by the United Nations group of experts on Libya, which highlighted the suspicious nature of this cargo ».
Aviation fuel for Haftar
Le Royal Diamond 7 had left the port of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates and was heading for Benghazi in Libya, the headquarters of Marshal Haftar's Libyan National Army. He carried " a cargo of jet fuel, likely to be used for military purposes ". A fuel, considered as 'military material' by the United Nations and, therefore, subject to the international embargo, under resolutions 2292 (2016) and 2526 (2020) of the Security Council of the United Nations, specifies t -on to Operation Irini HQ in Rome.
Diverted for investigation in a European port
The ship was " roundabout to a port in the European Union, for further investigation ". The final destination was still under discussion at the time of the arrest. It's a " political decision involving the States told B2, a person familiar with the matter. The EU ambassadors also met on Tuesday (September 14) to discuss this point (a meeting in 'reserved' format, ambassadors + 1 to keep discussions as confidential as possible). In the meantime, the ship was moving slowly in the Ionian Sea (off Sicily). The port of destination could be either in Italy, or even in Marseilles (South of France), port designated for the control of the embargo on arms in the plan of operations of EUNAVFOR Med Sophia, or in Greece.
Destination Greece
Finally, after a few days of waiting off Sicily, it seems (information at 14.9 in the morning) that the ship is heading for Greece. Exact destination: the port of Piraeus. Confirmation this morning. « The vessel was handed over to the Hellenic Coastguard on September 17 ” tells me a source close to the European management. EUNAVFOR MED IRINI will then “ cooperate with the Greek authorities for the investigation, in particular by providing the information gathered during the inspection ».
(Nicolas Gros-Verheyde)
A significant step
It is a " highly significant event said Peter Stano, the spokesperson for the High Representative of the EU answering a question from B2 this Friday noon. That " demonstrates Irini's ability to gather relevant information regarding potential violations of the UN embargo and its prompt and effective response to such violation “He also demonstrates” what we have been saying from the start: that Operation Irini is impartial. It is a concrete demonstration of the EU's commitment to the Berlin process and an instrument made available to the international community [...] to implement the arms embargo and contribute to ending to the conflict ". And the spokesman for European diplomacy to recall "once again", a European request: it is " of the responsibility of the international community as a whole to put an end to the foreign interference which fuels the conflict in Libya ».
Chief editor of the B2 site. Graduated in European law from the University of Paris I Pantheon Sorbonne and listener to the 65th session of the IHEDN (Institut des Hautes Etudes de la Défense Nationale. Journalist since 1989, founded B2 - Bruxelles2 in 2008. EU/NATO correspondent in Brussels for Sud-Ouest (previously West-France and France-Soir).
