An Iranian patrol boat told a UK frigate "Don't put your life in danger", shortly before Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) boarded the tanker Stena Impero on 19 July.
This is according to new audio released by the IRGC, which appears to be an extended cut of a clip released last week.
In the audio, the IRGC navy representative can be heard telling the Royal Navy warship HMS Montrose: "You are required not to interfere in these issues."
An English-accented voice replies: 'This is British warship Foxtrot 236. I am in the vicinity of an internationally recognised strait with a merchant vessel in my vicinity conducting transit passage."
The newly released recording, however, does not include the Royal Navy's warning that any interference with the tanker's passage would be in violation of international law.
The Royal Navy's warning was present in the audio released on 22 July.
Earlier today, the UK foreign secretary said Britain will not negotiate with Iran to exchange the Stena Impero for the VLCC Grace 1, which was seized in Gibraltar on 4 July.
“The Stena Impero was unlawfully detained. So this isn’t about some kind of barter. This is about international law,” Dominic Raab said this morning on BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
The UK now has two warships — the frigate HMS Montrose and the destroyer HMS Duncan — in the Middle East Gulf, which are escorting UK-flagged ships as they pass through the Strait of Hormuz.
The UK's Warlike Operations Area Committee will today decide if Hormuz will be redesignated as a high-risk area, which could lead to hikes in crew wages, as TradeWinds has reported.
Stena Bulk and Northern Marine Management are working with Iranian authorities to secure the release of the Stena Impero and its 23 crew members.
The vessel remains at anchor in Bandar Abbas, Iran.
