Sri Lankan authorities are monitoring 11 US-sanctioned Iranian oil tankers positioned in international waters off the island's southern coast, according to Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath and Sri Lankan military officials cited in international reporting.
The vessels have not entered Sri Lanka's territorial waters, and Sri Lanka says it has not facilitated them.
Foreign Minister Herath said the vessels were in international waters, where freedom of navigation applies.
Outside Sri Lanka's territorial waters
A Sri Lankan military official told AFP that reconnaissance aircraft and patrol boats had been deployed to monitor the vessels outside Sri Lanka's 12-nautical-mile territorial sea.
This distinction is important.
The vessels are near Sri Lanka, but available evidence does not establish that they are operating inside Sri Lankan territorial waters.
According to the military official, there was also no indication at the time of either ship-to-ship oil transfers or illegal discharge of pollutants that would provide a basis for Sri Lankan authorities to act.
Sri Lankan officials also said the vessels had not sought permission to enter Sri Lankan territory.
Why are the tankers near Sri Lanka?
The unusual concentration of Iranian vessels comes amid continuing US pressure on Iranian shipping.
International reporting indicates that Iranian vessels have faced difficulty returning to Iranian ports because of US maritime restrictions, leading some ships to remain in waters elsewhere in the region.
The situation has increased the strategic significance of shipping routes across the Indian Ocean.
For Sri Lanka, the immediate issue is not ownership of the vessels or enforcement of US sanctions in international waters, but monitoring maritime activity close to the island while protecting its territorial and environmental interests.
What has Sri Lanka said?
Sri Lanka's publicly reported position can be summarised in three points:
- the vessels remain outside Sri Lanka's territorial waters;
- Sri Lanka has not facilitated them; and
- authorities are monitoring their movements.
There was no reported indication at the time that the vessels were conducting an illegal oil transfer or causing unlawful marine pollution near Sri Lanka.
The situation could nevertheless become more significant if the vessels attempt to enter Sri Lankan waters or ports, engage in activity affecting Sri Lanka, or if Sri Lanka receives new diplomatic or sanctions-related communications concerning them.