A small tanker reportedly carrying liquefied gas from Iran is testing the U.S. blockade of Islamic Republic shipping.
The G Summer, a liquefied petroleum gas carrier, sent signals from the Arabian Sea on Tuesday that it had an “entire Chinese crew” on board, vessel tracking data compiled by Bloomberg show. Data from analytics firm Kpler shows Iran is its “last cargo country”.
The US began imposing a full blockade on Iranian shipping on April 13, covering all of the country’s ports, as well as the Gulf of Oman and part of the Arabian Sea. While Iran-linked vessels have entered the Persian Gulf during that time, none have sailed into the Arabian Sea until G Summer arrived.
The US-sanctioned vessel currently broadcasts its destination as Galle, Sri Lanka, a waypoint frequently mentioned by ships traveling to East Asia.
The US Navy on Sunday seized the first Iranian cargo ship since its blockade began. The country’s forces have ordered at least 27 vessels to turn around or return to an Iranian port since the blockade began.
The carrying capacity of the G Summer is about 7,000 cubic meters compared to a typical LPG cargo of about 80,000 cubic meters.
The ship’s tracks indicate a very quick turnaround as it reached waters south of Iraq, where Iranian cargo is sometimes transferred from ship to ship.
The industry databases do not provide phone numbers or email addresses for the company that manages G Summer.
The vessel’s main digital tracking system can be manipulated.
With help from Grant Smith and Julian Lee.
This article was generated from an automated news agency source without text modification.
