Sri Lanka, March 8 -- The U.S. State Department's Spokesperson has stated that Washington respects Sri Lanka's sovereignty in handling the situation involving the Iranian warship 'IRIS Bushehr' and its crew.

The spokesperson added that the final decision regarding the vessel, its crew, and the rescued Iranian sailors rests solely with Sri Lanka, in accordance with the country's domestic laws and international legal obligations.

This statement comes after Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath told a conference in New Delhi that Sri Lanka was caring for 32 sailors from the Iranian frigate IRIS Dena under Colombo's international treaty obligations.

The frigate was sunk by a US submarine on Wednesday just off Sri Lanka's southern coa...