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Russian Freight Ship Sinks off Turkey's Black Sea Coast, 2 Dead

FILE: Turkish patrol boat arrives at the Bosphorus Command headquarters following a resque operation in the Black Sea, in Istanbul, Turkey, April 27, 2017. REUTERS/Murad Sezer
FILE: Turkish patrol boat arrives at the Bosphorus Command headquarters following a resque operation in the Black Sea, in Istanbul, Turkey, April 27, 2017. REUTERS/Murad Sezer
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Russian Freight Ship Sinks off Turkey's Black Sea Coast, 2 Dead

FILE: Turkish patrol boat arrives at the Bosphorus Command headquarters following a resque operation in the Black Sea, in Istanbul, Turkey, April 27, 2017. REUTERS/Murad Sezer
FILE: Turkish patrol boat arrives at the Bosphorus Command headquarters following a resque operation in the Black Sea, in Istanbul, Turkey, April 27, 2017. REUTERS/Murad Sezer

A Palau-flagged freight ship has sunk off the coast of Turkey's Black Sea province of Bartin, killing two crew members, the coast guard said on Sunday, adding that search and rescue operations for more crew members were continuing.

Bartin Governor Sinan Guner had initially said the ship, the ARVIN, was a Russian dry freight vessel that sank off the coast of the Inkumu region in poor weather, but later corrected that.

"The ARVIN ship attempted to take refuge at the Bartin port due to poor weather conditions as it carried cargo from Georgia to Bulgaria," Guner was quoted as saying by state-owned Anadolu news agency.

The coast guard said the ship had sunk after taking in water amid heavy weather conditions. Six crew members had been rescued and efforts were underway to rescue others, it said in a statement.

The Russian state agency overseeing sea and river fleets said that only two crew members were Russian nationals and that the vessel belonged to the Ukrainian company Arvin Shipping Ltd.

A spokesman for Ukraine's foreign ministry confirmed the incident, saying Ukrainian consuls were providing consular assistance on site as operations to find four remaining sailors continued.

Guner said earlier that civilian ships had also been asked to help with the rescue effort, but that operations were
hindered by heavy rain and winds. The Turkish defense ministry said it had also sent a vessel to help with the rescue operations.

"There are high waves, and because of the waves the (rescue) boat can't see its surroundings. We are trying to reach them with directions from the shore," Guner was cited as saying.

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Iran: We Will Not Retreat from Our Principles in Nuclear Talks

President Masoud Pezeshkian and Mohammad Eslami, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, visit an exhibition of Iran’s nuclear industry achievements, last April (Iranian Presidency)
President Masoud Pezeshkian and Mohammad Eslami, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, visit an exhibition of Iran’s nuclear industry achievements, last April (Iranian Presidency)
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Iran: We Will Not Retreat from Our Principles in Nuclear Talks

President Masoud Pezeshkian and Mohammad Eslami, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, visit an exhibition of Iran’s nuclear industry achievements, last April (Iranian Presidency)
President Masoud Pezeshkian and Mohammad Eslami, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, visit an exhibition of Iran’s nuclear industry achievements, last April (Iranian Presidency)

Iran on Tuesday said it is open to accepting temporary limits on its uranium enrichment but Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian pledged that his country will never retreat from its core principles in the nuclear talks.

“These negotiations will be fully aligned with the Supreme Leader’s guidance, which will light our path,” the president said in a meeting with members of the Iranian Parliament’s Independent Faction.

He added, “We have not tied the livelihood of our people to the outcome of these talks - nor will we ever do so. We will never retreat from our principles in these negotiations, but we do not seek tension either.”

Tehran and Washington held their fourth round of nuclear talks on Sunday in Doha, with no apparent breakthrough.

On Tuesday, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi informed the National Security Committee that during indirect talks with the US, “uranium enrichment is a non-negotiable red line.”

“Uranium enrichment in Iran’s peaceful nuclear program is a red line for the country, alongside its defense and regional strength. Iran is not engaging in discussions regarding its enrichment principles,” Gharibabadi said, according to Ebrahim Rezaei, the spokesman for the Iranian parliament's national security and foreign policy commission.

Rezaei said some lawmakers suggested Tehran should withdraw from the nuclear talks “until Iran's right to enrichment is publicly recognized, and sanctions and threats are stopped.”

Meanwhile, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi again said Iran is open to accepting temporary limits on its uranium enrichment, without abandoning its nuclear program as requested by the US administration.

“For a limited period of time, we can accept a series of restrictions on the level and volume of enrichment,” said Takht-Ravanchi.

“We have not yet gone into details about the level and volume of enrichment,” he said, quoted by Tasnim news agency.

The Iranian official added that negotiations are still in the early stages, and no specific details about the limitations have been discussed yet.

“We have not reached the stage where we would determine a specific timeframe or enrichment percentage,” he said.

Takht-Ravanchi then argued that US behavior undermines trust. “American officials' threatening and non-threatening statements fail to build confidence and instead cast doubts and suspicions on Washington's position,” he noted.

On Monday, Iran's Revolutionary Guards aerospace commander, Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, said the country’s offensive capabilities have expanded, and that Iran’s adversaries are now more vulnerable to retaliation than ever before.

In a closed-door session with Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, Hajizadeh dismissed recent reports suggesting a decline in Iran’s defense strength as part of what he called a Western and Israeli media campaign aimed at undermining Iran’s image.