But you fail to see that putting Cornwall between the merchant vessel and the Iranian patrol boats might have meant Cornwall would be inside Iranian waters.
No Captain will be relieved of his command over this. It is the rules of engagement that are fault.
Even after the events in 2004 Iranian naval vessels were allowed to shadow all the way upto their territorial waterway limits. That both sides did. It has been seen consitantly since then as is the rights of both sides to do so. In this case the Iranians had an alterior motive in detaining the Royal Navy team.
The boarding party should not have been operating so close to the border that the Cornwall could not place itself between the boarding party and the Iranian navy.
There is no good reason for them to board boats that close to the border, especially after the Iranians had captured a group of British sailors in that area three years prior, and accused them of entering Iranian waters.
This is an obvious, foreseeable problem. It has happened before. They should have been operating in such a was as to be able to protect their people, because they obviously can't respond properly after their men have been taken hostage.
It would be bad if this were the first time British sailors had been taken captive working in this area and the British navy was caught being lax in employing measures to keep their people safe. However, this isn't the first time it has happened, and the commander cannot say this is something he had no reason to expect might happen.
They were forewarned by a previous similar situation, and the incident was preventable. He simply failed in his duty to protect his people. He should be sacked.