Calls to free UK yacht crew detained in Iran
Updated on 01 December 2009
Foreign Secretary David Miliband says there is "no confrontation or argument" in negotiations to release five British sailors detained in Iran after straying into Iranian waters.
Their boat, the Kingdom of Bahrain which is owned by Sail Bahrain, was stopped by the Iranian navy last Wednesday as. The five sailing from Bahrain to Dubai to compete in the 360 mile Dubai-Muscat Offshore Sailing Race when they inadvertently strayed into Iranian waters.
The crew members, who are believed to be safe and well, were named last night as Bahrain-based radio presenter David Bloomer, Oliver Smith, 31, from Southampton, Oliver Young, 21, from Plymouth, Sam Usher and Luke Porter, 21.
The Iranian Revolutionary Guards have confirmed today that the five are detained. A senior aide to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that Iran will "strongly confront" the sailors if proved they had "evil intentions".
David Miliband said that as the five were civilians he expected the Iranian government to deal with the issue quickly.
"These are five civilians. They are yachtsmen. They were going about their sport," he said.
"As far as we are aware, these people are being well-treated, which is right and what we would expect from a country like Iran."
Miliband added that "perfectly good discussions" had taken place between officials in London and Tehran.
Channel 4 News foreign affairs correspondent Jonathan Rugman said that unfortunately it was not for David Miliband to say whether the matter was political or not.
"It is for the Iranians now to decide whether to make it part of politics or not," he said.
"It seems pretty clear that these yachtsmen were in Iranian territorial waters.
"You are allowed to go in to territorial waters if you can demonstrate that you have a right of innocent passage; that you're on your way to somewhere else.
"What these yachtsmen were supposed to be doing was joining a race from Dubai to Muscat and they should not have been in Iranian territorial waters. It should not have happened. It was a mistake.
"But the Iranians now have to decide what they are going to do about that mistake and that will partly be about the Revolutionary Guards' view of the issues, what the view of the supreme leader is, what the view of the president is.
"And I think it could take some time for the wheels to turn - for the Iranians to decide what they are going to do.
"There has already been a delay because there has been a religious holiday but I was talking to Sir Richard Dalton, the former ambassador to Iran, and he said this could take days or this could even take weeks.
"Really it is a waiting game rather than a pressure game to see if the Iranians do actually release them or not.
"I think the problem is that if you apply too much pressure the Iranians are inclined to find them guilty than if you just wait a bit, give it time and see what happens."
Luke Porter's father, Charles, said he and his wife were concerned for their son's wellbeing. Speaking from the family Weston-Super-Mare home he said: "We are holding things together as a family at the moment.
"I haven't spoken to him since yesterday. He was as good as can be expected.
"He is a very strong character, very resilient. He's a professional sailor, very used to dealing with adversity.
"He's as good as we can expect. We are very concerned."
Sail Bahrain was recently launched by yachting company Team Pindar. A statement issued by the team said:
"On 25 November, Sail Bahrain's Kingdom of Bahrain Volvo 60 racing yacht was stopped by Iranian navy vessels, as it was making its way from Bahrain to the start of the Dubai-Muscat Offshore Sailing Race.
"The boat may have strayed inadvertently into Iranian waters.
"The five crew members, all British nationals, are still in Iran.
"All are understood to be safe and well and their families have been informed."
Two years ago 15 Royal Navy sailors were held by Iran for 12 days before being released.
