The G7 foreign ministers along with EU High Representative Josep Borrell issued a statement yesterday blaming Iran for the attack on the Mercer Street tanker . “We condemn the unlawful attack committed on a merchant vessel off the coast of Oman on 29 July,” they said. “This was a deliberate and targeted attack, and a clear violation of international law. All available evidence clearly points to Iran. There is no justification for this attack.”
“Iran’s behavior, alongside its support to proxy forces and non-state armed actors, threatens international peace and security,” the statement concluded. “We call on Iran to stop all activities inconsistent with relevant UN Security Council resolutions, and call on all parties to play a constructive role in fostering regional stability and peace.”
Iran Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh vigorously rejected the G7 statement as unfounded and baseless and blamed it on Israel. “We strongly condemn the baseless statement from the foreign ministers of G7 and the high representative of the European Union for foreign policy which has leveled groundless accusations against the Islamic Republic of Iran,” he said, reported Tasnim. He further stated that it is remarkable that such an anti-Iranian scenario was invented just a few days before the inauguration of the new Iranian President, which was a display of democratic transition of power in the Islamic Republic.
