The United States of America (USA) has opened an investigation into whether its NATO ally Spain denied docking to cargo ships allegedly carrying American weapons to Israel.
The Federal Maritime Commission, an independent body responsible for overseeing and evaluating conditions that may affect maritime transportation and US international commerce, announced today that it has launched an investigation after receiving information that Spain has refused to allow at least three cargo ships into its ports.
"The commission is concerned that this policy of denying berths to certain vessels appears to create unfavorable conditions for transportation in international trade," the commission said in a statement published in the US Official Gazette.
It is added that if the investigation establishes that Spain interfered in this type of trade, the commission can impose a fine of up to 2,3 million dollars per trip.
The Commission was informed on November 19 that Spain is denying access to ships, including those participating in the US-led maritime security program that protects ships and their owners from being subject to a "restrictive and discriminatory" licensing regime - because it often uses their services US Army.
Two of the three incidents mentioned by the Commission occurred in November and relate to ships operated by the Danish shipping and trading giant Maersk. The third happened in May.
The Spanish authorities are not commenting on the November incidents for now.
On the occasion of the May incident, the Spanish Minister of Transport, Oscar Puente, spoke out at the time, saying that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of his country refused to dock the ship "Mariana-Danica", which sailed under the Danish flag, "because it was transporting weapons to Israel".
A day later, Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said on state television that it was the first ship carrying weapons to Israel to be docked.
"We will not contribute to more weapons reaching the Middle East. The Middle East needs peace. That's why this first refusal to dock marks the beginning of a policy that will apply to every ship carrying weapons to Israel that wants to dock in one of the Spanish ports," he said. is Albares.
The move came just days before Spain, along with Ireland and Norway, recognized the state of Palestine on May 28.
Spain banned its own security firms from transporting weapons to Israel in October 2023.
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