Vessels in the northern Arabian Gulf have received VHF radio challenges, including demands to alter course, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said on Friday, adding that these are most likely part of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) large scale exercise widely reported in various media sources.
The UKMTO, which operates a Voluntary Reporting Scheme (VRS) for the Indian Ocean, specifically Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Arabian Sea, and acts as the primary point of contact for merchant vessels and liaison with military forces in the region, advised seafarers that vessels whether in or near to Iranian territorial waters may experience VHF hailing.
UKMTO has been made aware of several incidents involving VHF radio challenges to vessels in the northern Arabian Gulf.
Earlier, UKMTO received a report of an incident 86 nautical miles northeast of Ras Tanura, Saudi Arabia.
The vessel was approached by a small military craft with the master reporting that it is flashing a green laser light towards the bridge.
“The small military craft keeps hailing vessel to turn to port towards Iranian territorial waters,” the report said on Friday.
The authorities are investigating the incident whilst vessels are advised to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity to UKMTO.
