Malaysia PM: No evidence of ship-to-ship transfer of Iran oil off Malaysia

Malaysia Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said today that there was “not one shred of evidence” of ship-to-ship transfers of sanctioned Iranian oil off Malaysia, amid US concern that Iran was using Malaysian service providers to move its oil, Reuters reports.

A senior US Treasury official said last week the United States saw Iran’s capacity to move its oil as being reliant on providers in Malaysia.

That official also said the United States was trying to prevent Malaysia from becoming a jurisdiction where the Palestinian resistance group Hamas could both fundraise and then move money.

Speaking at an economic forum in Qatar, Anwar said Malaysia does not have the capacity to monitor ship-to-ship transfers in international waters.

Malaysia has long been a vocal supporter of the Palestinian cause and has advocated for a two-state solution.

During his three-day official visit to Qatar, Anwar met with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.

Anwar said that while he maintains good relations with the political wing of Hamas, he had no involvement with its military operations.

“I have no involvement or discussions with the military apparatus [of Hamas],” he said at the forum.

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