A United Nations operation to transfer more than one million barrels of oil from a decaying tanker into another ship off the coast of Yemen has been completed, officials said on Friday, averting a catastrophic spill that could have devastated marine life and communities across the Red Sea.
But with one crisis averted, another looms: The recovery vessel could be stranded until thorny negotiations over who owns the transferred oil are resolved.
For years, both of those governments have claimed ownership of the oil on the decaying tanker, called the FSO Safer, hoping to gain desperately needed revenue from its sale.
“The most pressing step was to prevent oil spillover from the deteriorating FSO Safer,” said Ahmed Nagi, a senior Yemen analyst at the International Crisis Group, an organization that researches conflicts.
“Now, with the salvage operation concluded, we find ourselves returning to the difficult point concerning the oil inside the tanker.”
Persons:
”, Ahmed Nagi
Organizations:
Nations, FSO, Crisis Group
Locations:
Yemen