Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi stressed Monday that Iran has warned United States (US) against released oil tanker seizure in open seas after it left Gibraltar, according to Reuters.
Asked whether the US could renew its seizure request after the tanker sailed from Gibraltar, Mousavi said: “Such an action ... would endanger shipping safety in open seas. We have issued a warning through official channels, especially the Swiss embassy.”
Switzerland represents U.S. interests in Iran which has no diplomatic relations with the United States.
Noteworthy, The Iranian tanker caught in a standoff between Tehran and the West was sailing to Greece on Monday after leaving Gibraltar, shipping data showed, hours after the British territory rejected a U.S. request to detain the vessel further.
The ship, renamed as Adrian Darya 1 by Iran, was previously called Grace 1. Filled with 2.1m barrels of oil, its cargo is worth an estimated £115m.
Royal Marines seized the vessel off the shores of Gibraltar on 4 July, saying it was carrying oil bound for Syria in breach of EU sanctions.
That prompted Iran to seize the British-flagged tanker Stena Impero in the Gulf in retaliation a fortnight later, sparking a crisis in diplomatic relations between the two countries. Britain responded by sending out a second warship to the Gulf to offer greater protection to merchant shipping.
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