The story of 10 USA sailors’ release from Iranian custody took a new turn late Wednesday, when Iranian state television aired video of what appeared to be the early moments of the crew’s capture.
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“Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was in touch with US Secretary of State (John) Kerry”.
Less than 24 hours after the U.S. Navy sailors were captured, they were released Wednesday morning.
“I want to express my gratitude to Iranian authorities for their cooperation in swiftly resolving this matter”, Kerry said.
“It is clear that today this kind of issue was able to be peacefully resolved and efficiently resolved, and that is a testament to the critical role that diplomacy plays in keeping our country safe, secure, and strong”. No”, Biden said. “And there was no looking for any apology.
State television quoted Gen. Ali Fadavi, the Navy chief of the Revolutionary Guard, saying a mechanical problem in the sailors’ navigation system caused them to enter Iranian waters.
Asked by reporters if she was troubled by the sailors’ treatment by Iran, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday that she hadn’t seen videos of the incident.
The same Iranian state outlet that produced the sailor’s interview had previously released footage that appeared to show when the sailors were detained aboard their Riverine boats. He also said that Zarif had said the USA must apologize for its actions.
Commander Kevin Stephens, a 5th Fleet spokesman, said the priority now would be determining “how exactly these sailors found themselves in Iran”. Riverine boats are 38-foot long, high-speed patrol boats used by the US Navy and Marines to patrol rivers and littoral waters.
Officials said a radio signal from one of the boats showed that they were on Farsi Island, setting off efforts to contact the Iranians. “This apology-regardless of context-is going to be misused to diminish American power in the world and to bolster the terrorist state of Iran”, he told Fox News.
So they know whatever they do will be spun into a positive development – proof that, as Biden said, “this is the way nations should do it”. The deal freezes Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for lifting sanctions against Iran.
The agreement is expected to be implemented in the coming days, following Iran’s steps taken to curb its nuclear activities.
“Yet, over the course of three years and far many, many, many more face-to-face meetings and telephone calls, at which you guys say he raises the cases of the detained American civilians in Iran on every occasion, that not has yet been resolved”.
According to the Navy and the Pentagon, the two boats were enroute from Kuwait to Bahrain when one of them foundered – either because of running out of fuel or engine problems.
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Otherwise, “they probably would have been kept a few more days”, Hertling said.
