SIMIC

GREECE had issued warnings to shipowners to avoid sailing close to Iranian waters days before Tehran seized two tankers amid heightening tensions in the region, reports Reuters.

Iran seized a second oil tanker in a week on in Persian Gulf waters, the US Navy said in the latest escalation of seizures and attacks on commercial vessels since 2019.

The incident comes after Iran on April 27 seized a Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman, which was being held by authorities in the Iranian Port of Bandar Abbas.

Greece is home to many of the world's leading shipowners, managers and the broader maritime services industry.

"Due to recent Iranian threats of possible retaliation against Greek shipping, we strongly recommend the navigation in the above area as well as in the Straits of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman to be carried out, if possible, outside the waters under Iran's jurisdiction, and under increased caution when sailing near the above areas," Greece's shipping ministry said in an advisory dated April 20.

Data from analytics company MarineTraffic showed the number of tankers that left Gulf countries near to Iran reached 107 vessels and an additional 36 LNG carriers in the April 19-26 period versus 60 tankers and 26 carriers in the April 27-May 3 period.

About a fifth of the world's crude oil and oil products passes through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow choke point between Iran and Oman, according to data from analytics firm Vortexa.