- Title: Iran says Grace 1 tanker to leave Gibraltar soon
- Date: 15th August 2019
- Summary: AT SEA OFF GIBRALTAR (AUGUST 15, 2019) (REUTERS) OIL TANKER GRACE 1 SITTING ANCHORED OFF THE GIBRALTAR COAST FRONT OF TANKER READING (English): "GRACE 1 PANAMA" TANKER AT SEA GRACE 1 PROW WITH ANCHOR DOWN TANKER SEEN IN DISTANCE VARIOUS OF TANKER AT SEA SUN SETTING OVER SEA SAIL BOAT SAILING PAST SUNSET AT SEA OFF GIBRALTAR (AUGUST 15, 2019) (REUTERS) (NIGHT SHOTS) MOON IN SKY MOONLIGHT REFLECTING ON SEA VARIOUS OF MOON MOONLIGHT REFLECTING ON SEA
- Embargoed: 30th August 2019 00:50
- Keywords: Gibraltar Iran Britain tamnker Grace 1
- Location: AT SEA OFF GIBRALTAR
- City: AT SEA OFF GIBRALTAR
- Country: Gibraltar
- Topics: Diplomacy/Foreign Policy,Government/Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA001ASBYWJR
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:Britain's Mediterranean territory Gibraltar decided on Thursday (August 15) to free a seized Iranian oil tanker, but did not immediately indicate when or if the ship would set sail after the United States launched a new, last-minute legal bid to hold it.
The Grace 1 was seized by British Royal Marine commandos on July 4 on suspicion of violating European Union sanctions by taking oil to Syria, a close ally of Iran.
Two weeks later, Iran seized a British-flagged tanker in the Strait of Hormuz leading into the Gulf.
The two tankers have become pawns in the standoff between Iran and the West, their fate tangled up in the diplomatic differences between the EU's big powers and the United States.
Gibraltar Chief Minister Fabian Picardo decided to lift the detention order after formal written assurances from Tehran that the ship would not discharge its 2.1 million barrels of oil in Syria.
However, Gibraltar officials did not make clear whether the U.S. legal bid would mean the ship would have to be detained further or, if so, for how long.
(Production: Marco Trujillo, Soraya Ali) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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