Italy's Eni to Pull Out of Russia-Turkey Pipeline

The logo on the headquarters of Italian oil and gas company Eni in San Donato Milanese, near Milan, Italy, Oct. 27, 2017. (AFP Photo)
The logo on the headquarters of Italian oil and gas company Eni in San Donato Milanese, near Milan, Italy, Oct. 27, 2017. (AFP Photo)
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Italy's Eni to Pull Out of Russia-Turkey Pipeline

The logo on the headquarters of Italian oil and gas company Eni in San Donato Milanese, near Milan, Italy, Oct. 27, 2017. (AFP Photo)
The logo on the headquarters of Italian oil and gas company Eni in San Donato Milanese, near Milan, Italy, Oct. 27, 2017. (AFP Photo)

Italian oil giant Eni said Tuesday it would withdraw from the Blue Stream gas pipeline linking Russia to Turkey, in which it has a 50 percent stake.

"Eni intends to sell its stake" in Blue Stream, a company spokesman said, following moves by rivals BP and Shell to divest from Russia-linked projects after Moscow invaded Ukraine.

The company controls the gas pipeline -- which links the two countries via the Black Sea -- equally with Russian energy giant Gazprom.

"Eni's current presence in Russia is marginal" and joint ventures with Russian energy giant Rosneft linked to exploration licenses in the Arctic "have already been frozen for years" due to sanctions imposed on Russia since 2014, the spokesman said.

Russia launched an invasion of Ukraine on Thursday, triggering a wave of international condemnation and Western economic sanctions against Moscow, AFP said.

Shell announced on Monday it would sell its stake in all joint ventures with Gazprom, after Russia launched the operation.

That included its 27.5 percent share in the oil and gas project Sakhalin-2, on Sakhalin island in Russia's far east.

It would also end its 50 percent interests in the Salym oilfield development in western Siberia, and the Gydan exploration project in the Gydan peninsula, in northwest Siberia.

On Sunday, BP announced it was pulling its 19.75 percent stake in Rosneft, and chief executive Bernard Looney said he was resigning from the Russian company's board with immediate effect.

BP shares slumped on Monday, wiping billions of dollars from the company's value.

French energy giant TotalEnergies on Tuesday announced it would no longer provide capital for new projects in Russia but would not withdraw from current projects in which it was invested.

Russia is preparing a presidential decree aimed at preventing foreign investment exiting the country, its prime minister said Tuesday, after Moscow was hit by the barrage of sanctions.

"To enable businesses to make informed decisions, a draft presidential decree has been prepared to introduce temporary restrictions on exiting Russian assets," Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said.



Iran Says It Warned US Destroyer to Move Away from Waters Monitored by Tehran

In this June 1, 2017 photo, the guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald, foreground, (DDG 62) makes its way with the Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group, through the Sea of Japan. (Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Kelsey L. Adams/US Navy via AP)
In this June 1, 2017 photo, the guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald, foreground, (DDG 62) makes its way with the Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group, through the Sea of Japan. (Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Kelsey L. Adams/US Navy via AP)
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Iran Says It Warned US Destroyer to Move Away from Waters Monitored by Tehran

In this June 1, 2017 photo, the guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald, foreground, (DDG 62) makes its way with the Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group, through the Sea of Japan. (Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Kelsey L. Adams/US Navy via AP)
In this June 1, 2017 photo, the guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald, foreground, (DDG 62) makes its way with the Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group, through the Sea of Japan. (Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Kelsey L. Adams/US Navy via AP)

Iran warned a US destroyer on Wednesday to change course after it approached waters being monitored by the country, leading the US ship to turn away, Iranian state media reported.

The US Navy and U.S. Central Command, which overseas US forces in the Middle East, had no immediate comment on the report.

The reported incident follows US strikes last month on Iranian nuclear facilities that Washington says were part of a program geared towards developing nuclear weapons. Tehran maintains that its nuclear program is for purely civilian purposes.

"US destroyer 'Fitzgerald' attempted to approach waters under Iran's monitoring in a provocative move", Iranian state TV said, adding that a Navy helicopter quickly approached the destroyer and issued a stern warning to leave the area.

The US destroyer threatened the Iranian helicopter, but moved out of the area upon continued warning, state TV said.

Iranian state media identified the vessel in question as "DDG Fitzgerald", adding the Iranian Army contacted the vessel asserting the helicopter was under its protection and asking the ship to change it direction to the south.