A naval vessel from Sri Lanka approaches an Iranian warship during a rescue operation in waters south of Sri Lanka. Photo provided by Sri Lanka Navy. REUTERS
[ワシントン ６日 ロイター] – The United States is pressuring the Sri Lankan government not to repatriate survivors of an Iranian warship sunk by a U.S. submarine this month and the crew of another Iranian vessel in Sri Lankan authorities’ custody. Reuters obtained an internal document from the US State Department on the 6th.
A US submarine sank an Iranian warship off the coast of southern Sri Lanka on the 4th, killing dozens of crew members.
On the 5th, Sri Lanka began disembarking 208 crew members from an Iranian naval auxiliary ship that was in the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ). President Dissanayaka said Sri Lanka had a “humanitarian responsibility” to host the crew.
According to a State Department diplomatic cable dated March 6, Jane Howell, Charge d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Colombo, stressed to the Sri Lankan government that neither the crew of the auxiliary ship nor the 32 survivors of the warship should be repatriated to Iran.
“Sri Lankan authorities should minimize Iranian attempts to use detainees for propaganda purposes,” the cable said.
Howell also informed Israel’s ambassadors to India and Sri Lanka that there were no plans to repatriate the crew to Iran. The Israeli ambassador reportedly asked whether any contact had been made with the crew to encourage them to “defect.”
According to the cable, the auxiliary ship will remain under the control of Sri Lankan authorities for the duration of the conflict.
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