Sri Lanka puts ‘national interest first’ as 19 Iranian ships face shortages offshore, with possible U.S. secondary sanctions cited

Sri Lanka has no immediate plans to assist 19 Iranian vessels anchored about 24 nautical miles off its coast, where crews are short of food, water and fuel, the government says. Foreign Ministry spokesman Thushara Rodrigo said the country would put its national interests first and that companies supplying the ships could face U.S. secondary sanctions.

Rodrigo said the United States had not warned Sri Lanka of repercussions if it provided assistance. The Iranian Embassy in Colombo said it had no details about the vessels. Nearly seven months earlier, a U.S. torpedo attack sank the Iranian naval ship IRIS Dena near Sri Lanka, killing 87 sailors; Sri Lanka later repatriated wounded sailors treated in its hospitals.