Blinken Vows "Collective Response" to Iran on Israeli Ship Attack

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United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed the attack on the Israeli ship in the Sea of Oman, saying that Iran is acting "irresponsibly," adding that it is posing a threat to commerce and innocent sailors.

"I want to condemn again the attack on Friday against the commercial ship … We've conducted a thorough review and we're confident that Iran carried out this attack," said Blinken during a Monday press briefing at the State Department.

He said that the US would work with the UK, Romania, "Israel," and other countries to respond to the attack on the Israeli ship.

"We are in very close contact and coordination with the United Kingdom, Israel, Romania, and other countries, and there will be a collective response."

Blinken noted that this is 'habitual' for Iran, as he said, "I'm not sure that this particular action is anything new or augers anything one way or another for the new government. But what it does say is that Iran continues to act with tremendous irresponsibility."

In turn, Zamir Kabulov, a Russian presidential envoy to Afghanistan and a high-ranking official in the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said that there is no reason to believe that Iran is responsible for the attack on the Israeli tanker, as no solid evidence has been provided by any party.

Previously, Israeli media reported that "Israel" will not ignore the incident, saying that a political response would not suffice.

Earlier on Monday, Iran expressed its rejection of the false allegations made against it, while warning against any move by Western countries and "Israel" against the Islamic Republic. It stated that it has a clear policy for self-defense, adding that there would be a "tough response" to any moves.