The Deputy Prime Minister of Crimea, Georgy Muradov, suggested that “Iran can use our shipping capabilities, river-sea canals in such situation and carry oil over the Volga-Don canal, via Crimea, to the Black Sea.” This would allow Iran to bypass the Suez Canal and avoid potential confrontations with Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the United States. Muradov’s statement comes weeks after Iran’s Grace 1 oil tanker was seized by British Royal Marines off the coast of Gibraltar.