Gibraltar defies US to order release of Iranian tanker
A seized Iranian oil tanker is to be released by Gibraltar despite a lastminute plea by US officials to have the vessel turned over to them.
The ship, named Grace 1, was captured by British Royal Marines on August 4 after it was found to be violating EU sanctions by carrying 2.1 million barrels of crude oil to Syria.
Fabian Picardo, chief minister of Gibraltar, said he had received written assurances from Iran that the ship would not violate EU sanctions any further. ‘‘In light of the assurances we have received, there are no longer any reasonable grounds for the continued legal detention of the Grace 1 in order to ensure compliance with the EU Sanctions Regulation,’’ he said.
He said the emergency request for the detention of the vessel, made yesterday by President Donald Trump’s administration, would be considered separately.
The ship’s release will raise hopes Tehran will free the Stena Impero, a British-flagged tanker seized by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard two weeks after the Iranian vessel was seized. However, although Grace 1’s captain has been released from custody it is not clear when the ship will set sail for Iran or if the US will try to take further action to prevent its departure.
The US did not immediately respond to Gibraltar’s decision to free the ship and it is not clear if officials in Washington had given Britain any warning they wanted to seize it.
Javad Zarif, Iran’s foreign minister, condemned the US effort to stop the release of the Grace 1. ‘‘The US attempted to abuse the legal system to steal our property on the high seas. This piracy attempt is indicative of [the] Trump administration’s contempt for the law,’’ he said.
Zarif gave no indication that the Stena Impero would be released. Iran has occasionally suggested an exchange to free both tankers but never made a formal offer.
A Foreign Office spokesman said there could be ‘‘no comparison or linkage between Iran’s unacceptable and illegal seizure of, and attacks on, commercial shipping vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and the enforcement of EU Syria sanctions by the Government of Gibraltar’’.
‘‘Freedom of navigation for commercial shipping must be respected and international law upheld,’’ he added.
Iran seized the Stena Impero on July 19 and its 23 crew members, from India, Russia, Latvia and the Philippines remain in custody at the port of Bandar Abbas. Iran has also seized two other tankers and allegedly used naval mines to attack several other oil vessels in the Persian Gulf.
Tehran has repeatedly accused the UK of seizing the Grace 1 as part of Trump’s ‘‘maximum pressure’’ sanctions campaign against Iran. Britain has denied the allegations.
British warships are now escorting UK-flagged vessels through the Strait of Hormuz as part of a US-led naval mission.
– Telegraph Group