LONDON - London hauled up the Iranian ambassador Monday for a third dose of frank talking, demanding the immediate release of 15 British sailors seized by Tehran's Revolutionary Guards.
Foreign Office minister Lord David Triesman told ambassador Rasoul Movahedian in no uncertain terms that Britain saw the capture as a very serious matter as he spelled out London's demands, a spokesman said.
Triesman reiterated the British government's call to be told where the service personnel were being held and requested consular access during the 45-minute meeting.
The minister repeated Britain's assertion that the sailors were in Iraqi waters when they were surrounded and seized at gunpoint.
Discussions were "frank and clinical," said a Foreign Office spokesman.
"Lord Triesman outlined the seriousness of the situation and repeated the government's demands about the whereabouts of our personnel, the embassy requests for consular access and that they should be released immediately.
"He also restated again that we were in no doubt that our personnel were seized inside Iraqi territorial waters."
Britain says the eight sailors and seven marines were conducting "routine" anti-smuggling operations in the Shatt al-Arab waterway in the north of the Gulf on Friday. Iran says they had intruded into Iranian waters.
Defence Secretary Des Browne told parliament's lower House of Commons that the government was doing all it could to secure the sailors' release.
"I know the whole house will join me in sending our thoughts to the 15 members of HMS Cornwall, currently detained by Iran," he said.
"I do not intend to comment further on this issue other than to say we are doing everything possible to secure their release.
"At an appropriate time in the near future, the Foreign Office will inform the house of the diplomatic efforts that are being pursued."
Armed Forces Minister Adam Ingram added that there was "too much speculation" about what had happened on the ill-fated British operation.
"Those who were carrying out that mission clearly have to respond to whatever threat which is posed to them," he said.
"Therefore we will have to investigate that when they return to these shores, when they will give their version of events rather than the speculation which has been currently paraded around in the media and elsewhere."
Shockwaves from the seizure, which British Prime Minister Tony Blair has labelled "unjustified and wrong," continued to reverberate around the world.
Iraq's Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said he had spoken to his Iranian counterpart Manouchehr Mottaki and insisted that the British sailors were in Iraqi waters.
In addition to a ministry statement, Zebari told BBC radio: "We have good relations, good communications, with the Iranian government.
"We are going to use whatever influence, goodwill, we have to ensure that these sailors are released as soon as possible."
03/26/2007 19:30 GMT