The Iranian tanker Grace 1 would be released on Thursday Gibraltar Chief Minister Fabian Picardo said adding that Gibraltar authorities would not renew the order to detain the oil tanker, The Sun newspaper reported.
According to The Sun, the captain of the Grace 1 reportedly gave the Gibraltar Chief Minister a written undertaking, and Picardo would not ask a judge to extend the detention during a court hearing on Thursday.
The Grace 1 was seized by UK marines on 4 July over an alleged breach of EU sanctions against Syria.
The situation prompted Iran to tighten its control over the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf. On 19 July, Tehran seized the UK-flagged tanker Stena Impero in its territorial waters, saying it had violated maritime norms and ignored the Iranian warnings. The tanker is now in the Bandar Abbas port, with all the 23 crew members remaining on board.
On Tuesday (August 13), the deputy director of the Ports and Maritime Organization of Iran for maritime affairs, Jaleel Eslami, said the UK is going to let Iran’s supertanker go.
The Iranian official said the UK has seized Iran’s supertanker deliberately, adding that the documents on the settlement of the issue have already been exchanged between Iran and the UK.
“They (the UK officials) have voiced willingness for the resolution of the problem,” Eslami stated.
He said the Iranian oil tanker will soon be released and resume sailing freely with the flag of Iran.
Source: Agencies
