Cyprus Seizes Iranian Arms Ship

If you recall, there was a bit of discussion regarding an Iranian ship that was suspected in delivering arms to Gaza. The ship was officially seized by Cyprus authorities on Monday, following a UN sanctions panel agreeing the contents of the shipments violated Iranian arms exportation sanctions. Fairplay Magazine (subscription only) has the story.

CYPRUS is today holding cargo from the Russian-owned general cargo vessel Monchegorsk - cargo that has been at the centre of international intrigue for the past few weeks.

Cypriot Defence Minister Costas Papacostas said over the weekend that while the 23,128dwt ship did not carry weapons per se, it did have more than 90 containers aboard stuffed with “material that could be used in the manufacture of munitions".

The Nicosia government has detained the Cyprus-flagged ship at Limassol since 29 January on request of the US State Department, which has alleged that the cargo violated UN sanctions against Iran, which shipped the seized boxes.

Last week, the UN Security Council’s sanctions panel agreed that the cargo violated Iranian arms exportation sanctions. Offloading of the boxes began on Friday. They will be stored at a Cypriot naval base near the port.

No long-term determination has yet been made for the cargo, which first came to light when the vessel was stopped and inspected in the Red Sea after departing Bandar Abbas by a US warship.

There are a lot of people who have been frustrated with the process that has finally led to this conclusion. That frustration was driven primarily by a lack of patience by the Iran hawks. For me, I see this as the best case scenario.

The UN approach is always preferred in my opinion, because this approach prevents any international political blow back by applying an international rule set through the United Nations. Baby steps forward is still movement in the right direction, and success builds confidence in the international approach to the application of sanctions (something many really need to do a better job of).

That last part probably frustrates many who believe the international approach to the Iranian nuclear issue is a failure waiting to happen, but the alternative is probably war which involves considerably more risk, and is also seen as an approach that would represent failure waiting to happen.