African state denies ownership of vessel seized by Iran
The government of Eswatini has distanced itself from a vessel reportedly intercepted by Iranian authorities, insisting that the ship was using the kingdom’s flag illegally and that Eswatini has no operational ship registry.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the Ministry of Public Works and Transport said Eswatini does not have any ship registered under its flag at this moment, adding that the country has neither authorised nor appointed any individual, company or foreign agent to register vessels on its behalf.
”Consequently, any person or entity claiming to operate a ship under the Eswatini flag is doing so illegally. Such actors are criminals who must be dealt with by the relevant international authorities, including Interpol or the maritime regulators they attempt to deceive,” said Principal Secretary Thulani Mkhaliphi.
The response follows a Reuters report in which Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed to have seized an Eswatini-flagged tanker alleged to be carrying more than 350,000 litres of smuggled fuel near the port of Bushehr.
Eswatini said it cannot identify who owns the vessels making use of its flag, because no registry exists and no law has ever been enacted to create one. The misuse of the country’s name, Mkhaliphi said, is “deeply irresponsible and criminal,” carried out by unscrupulous networks involved in illicit activities such as fuel smuggling.
The government said it is working with the International Maritime Organization and other global enforcement bodies to address the fraudulent use of its national symbols, and reaffirmed that it has no maritime industry and has never been party to any such activities.
”The Kingdom of Eswatini has no connection whatsoever to the vessel reported to be seized in Iran, and we reject in the strongest terms any attempts to associate our country with maritime criminality,” Mkhaliphi said.
Further details about the seized vessel, including ownership and cargo origin, have not been independently verified beyond the initial Iranian report.
