SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo delivers remarks to the press at the State Department on June 21, 2019 in Washington, D.C. (Photo: Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images)
'Outright Blackmail': Trump Admin. Reportedly Offered Captain Multi-Million Dollar Bribe in Effort to Seize Iranian Tanker
"The U.S. complains loudly that Iran engages in 'blackmail.' Yet Brian Hook is directly emailing tanker captains offering bribes to get them to bring their ships into U.S. clutches."
Sep 04, 2019
Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif on Wednesday accused the Trump administration of engaging in "outright blackmail" after the Financial Times reported a State Department official offered the captain of an Iran-owned oil tanker millions of dollars to divert the ship to a nation which would detain it on behalf of the United States.
According to FT, Brian Hook, head of the State Department's Iran Action Group, sent an email promising the captain of Iranian supertanker Grace 1 "several million dollars" to do the bidding of the Trump administration.
"This is Brian Hook... I work for Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and serve as the U.S. representative for Iran," Hook wrote to Akhilesh Kumar, the Indian captain of the supertanker, according to emails viewed by FT.
"I am writing with good news," Hook said, referring to the Trump administration's multi-million dollar offer.
Hook's email, according to FT, was sent 11 days after the Gribraltar Supreme Court last month ordered the release of Grace 1, which was detained by British forces in July on orders from the U.S.
The Trump administration alleged the tanker was carrying oil to Syria in violation of European Union sanctions. Iran denied that charge.
In a second email to Kumar that was viewed by FT, Hook warned the captain that refusing the U.S. cash--which several observers described as a "bribe"--would carry consequences.
"With this money you can have any life you wish and be well-off in old age," Hook wrote. "If you choose not to take this easy path, life will be much harder for you."
\u201cThis is incredible. The US complains loudly that Iran engages in \u201cblackmail.\u201d Yet Brian Hook is *directly* emailing tanker captains offering bribes to get them to bring their ships into US clutches. How embarrassing. \nhttps://t.co/lT2DKkyRSQ\u201d— Esfandyar Batmanghelidj (@Esfandyar Batmanghelidj) 1567612459
Following Hook's email, according to FT, the Iranian ship made moves that seemed to indicate its captain was considering how to respond to the Trump administration's offer. Kumar ultimately did not reply, FT reported, and Hook notified the Kumar that the Treasury Department had sanctioned him.
News of the State Department's efforts to seize the Iranian tanker comes following months of sky-high tensions between Iran and the U.S. Fears of war between the two nations have been growing rapidly since President Donald Trump violated the Iran nuclear agreement last year.
As Common Dreams reported in June, Trump approved a strike on Iran following the downing of an unmanned American surveillance drone. The president decided to call off the attack at the last minute.
In response to FT's story, Zarif, who was sanctioned by the Treasury Department in July, said the Trump administration's efforts to impose its will on Iran are beginning to fit a "pattern."
"Having failed at piracy, the U.S. resorts to outright blackmail--deliver us Iran's oil and receive several million dollars or be sanctioned yourself," said Zarif. "Sounds very similar to the Oval Office invitation I received a few weeks back."
\u201cHaving failed at piracy, the US resorts to outright blackmail\u2014deliver us Iran\u2019s oil and receive several million dollars or be sanctioned yourself.\n\nSounds very similar to the Oval Office invitation I received a few weeks back.\n\nIt is becoming a pattern.\n\n#BTeamGangsters\u201d— Javad Zarif (@Javad Zarif) 1567615333
FT reported that Hook's emails to Kumar were not "an isolated case."
According to FT, Hook in recent weeks has reached out to "roughly a dozen captains" with similar messages.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif on Wednesday accused the Trump administration of engaging in "outright blackmail" after the Financial Times reported a State Department official offered the captain of an Iran-owned oil tanker millions of dollars to divert the ship to a nation which would detain it on behalf of the United States.
According to FT, Brian Hook, head of the State Department's Iran Action Group, sent an email promising the captain of Iranian supertanker Grace 1 "several million dollars" to do the bidding of the Trump administration.
"This is Brian Hook... I work for Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and serve as the U.S. representative for Iran," Hook wrote to Akhilesh Kumar, the Indian captain of the supertanker, according to emails viewed by FT.
"I am writing with good news," Hook said, referring to the Trump administration's multi-million dollar offer.
Hook's email, according to FT, was sent 11 days after the Gribraltar Supreme Court last month ordered the release of Grace 1, which was detained by British forces in July on orders from the U.S.
The Trump administration alleged the tanker was carrying oil to Syria in violation of European Union sanctions. Iran denied that charge.
In a second email to Kumar that was viewed by FT, Hook warned the captain that refusing the U.S. cash--which several observers described as a "bribe"--would carry consequences.
"With this money you can have any life you wish and be well-off in old age," Hook wrote. "If you choose not to take this easy path, life will be much harder for you."
\u201cThis is incredible. The US complains loudly that Iran engages in \u201cblackmail.\u201d Yet Brian Hook is *directly* emailing tanker captains offering bribes to get them to bring their ships into US clutches. How embarrassing. \nhttps://t.co/lT2DKkyRSQ\u201d— Esfandyar Batmanghelidj (@Esfandyar Batmanghelidj) 1567612459
Following Hook's email, according to FT, the Iranian ship made moves that seemed to indicate its captain was considering how to respond to the Trump administration's offer. Kumar ultimately did not reply, FT reported, and Hook notified the Kumar that the Treasury Department had sanctioned him.
News of the State Department's efforts to seize the Iranian tanker comes following months of sky-high tensions between Iran and the U.S. Fears of war between the two nations have been growing rapidly since President Donald Trump violated the Iran nuclear agreement last year.
As Common Dreams reported in June, Trump approved a strike on Iran following the downing of an unmanned American surveillance drone. The president decided to call off the attack at the last minute.
In response to FT's story, Zarif, who was sanctioned by the Treasury Department in July, said the Trump administration's efforts to impose its will on Iran are beginning to fit a "pattern."
"Having failed at piracy, the U.S. resorts to outright blackmail--deliver us Iran's oil and receive several million dollars or be sanctioned yourself," said Zarif. "Sounds very similar to the Oval Office invitation I received a few weeks back."
\u201cHaving failed at piracy, the US resorts to outright blackmail\u2014deliver us Iran\u2019s oil and receive several million dollars or be sanctioned yourself.\n\nSounds very similar to the Oval Office invitation I received a few weeks back.\n\nIt is becoming a pattern.\n\n#BTeamGangsters\u201d— Javad Zarif (@Javad Zarif) 1567615333
FT reported that Hook's emails to Kumar were not "an isolated case."
According to FT, Hook in recent weeks has reached out to "roughly a dozen captains" with similar messages.
Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif on Wednesday accused the Trump administration of engaging in "outright blackmail" after the Financial Times reported a State Department official offered the captain of an Iran-owned oil tanker millions of dollars to divert the ship to a nation which would detain it on behalf of the United States.
According to FT, Brian Hook, head of the State Department's Iran Action Group, sent an email promising the captain of Iranian supertanker Grace 1 "several million dollars" to do the bidding of the Trump administration.
"This is Brian Hook... I work for Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and serve as the U.S. representative for Iran," Hook wrote to Akhilesh Kumar, the Indian captain of the supertanker, according to emails viewed by FT.
"I am writing with good news," Hook said, referring to the Trump administration's multi-million dollar offer.
Hook's email, according to FT, was sent 11 days after the Gribraltar Supreme Court last month ordered the release of Grace 1, which was detained by British forces in July on orders from the U.S.
The Trump administration alleged the tanker was carrying oil to Syria in violation of European Union sanctions. Iran denied that charge.
In a second email to Kumar that was viewed by FT, Hook warned the captain that refusing the U.S. cash--which several observers described as a "bribe"--would carry consequences.
"With this money you can have any life you wish and be well-off in old age," Hook wrote. "If you choose not to take this easy path, life will be much harder for you."
\u201cThis is incredible. The US complains loudly that Iran engages in \u201cblackmail.\u201d Yet Brian Hook is *directly* emailing tanker captains offering bribes to get them to bring their ships into US clutches. How embarrassing. \nhttps://t.co/lT2DKkyRSQ\u201d— Esfandyar Batmanghelidj (@Esfandyar Batmanghelidj) 1567612459
Following Hook's email, according to FT, the Iranian ship made moves that seemed to indicate its captain was considering how to respond to the Trump administration's offer. Kumar ultimately did not reply, FT reported, and Hook notified the Kumar that the Treasury Department had sanctioned him.
News of the State Department's efforts to seize the Iranian tanker comes following months of sky-high tensions between Iran and the U.S. Fears of war between the two nations have been growing rapidly since President Donald Trump violated the Iran nuclear agreement last year.
As Common Dreams reported in June, Trump approved a strike on Iran following the downing of an unmanned American surveillance drone. The president decided to call off the attack at the last minute.
In response to FT's story, Zarif, who was sanctioned by the Treasury Department in July, said the Trump administration's efforts to impose its will on Iran are beginning to fit a "pattern."
"Having failed at piracy, the U.S. resorts to outright blackmail--deliver us Iran's oil and receive several million dollars or be sanctioned yourself," said Zarif. "Sounds very similar to the Oval Office invitation I received a few weeks back."
\u201cHaving failed at piracy, the US resorts to outright blackmail\u2014deliver us Iran\u2019s oil and receive several million dollars or be sanctioned yourself.\n\nSounds very similar to the Oval Office invitation I received a few weeks back.\n\nIt is becoming a pattern.\n\n#BTeamGangsters\u201d— Javad Zarif (@Javad Zarif) 1567615333
FT reported that Hook's emails to Kumar were not "an isolated case."
According to FT, Hook in recent weeks has reached out to "roughly a dozen captains" with similar messages.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.