BAGHDAD, July 22 (Xinhua) -- The Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi on Monday held a phone call with British Defense Secretary Penny Mordaunt over regional tensions in the Middle East region.

This handout picture released by Tasnim News Agency on July 20, 2019, shows British-flagged tanker Stena Impero anchored in Bandar Abbas in southern Iran. (Photo: VCG)

During the phone call, the two sides "confirmed the necessity of achieving security and stability in the Gulf region and the Middle East, as well as freedom of (maritime) navigation for all countries (in the Gulf waters) and respecting international law," a statement by Abdul Mahdi's media office said.

The two sides also discussed the regional security situation, means of easing tensions and avoiding escalation, the statement said.

The phone call came after Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) seized on Friday the British oil tanker "Stena Impero" in the Strait of Hormuz because of what Iran said "the oil tanker's failure to respect the international maritime rules while passing through the strait."

Following the Friday incident in the Strait of Hormuz, British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt warned that serious consequences would ensue if Iran's seizure of the British oil tanker is not resolved quickly.