GIBRALTAR: The Iranian tanker caught in a stand-off between Tehran and the West is expected to leave Gibraltar early this morning, Iran’s ambassador to Britain said, hours after the British territory rejected a US request to detain the vessel further.
British Royal Marines seized the tanker in Gibraltar in July on suspicion that it was carrying oil to Syria in violation of European Union sanctions.
The Grace 1’s detention ended last week, but on Friday a federal court in Washington issued a warrant for the seizure of the tanker, the oil it carries and nearly $1 million.
Gibraltar said it could not comply with that request because it was bound by EU law. “The EU sanctions regime against Iran – which is applicable in Gibraltar – is much narrower than that applicable in the US,” the government said in a statement. “The Gibraltar Central Authority is unable to seek an Order of the Supreme Court of Gibraltar to provide the restraining assistance required by the United States of America.”