Britain's Mediterranean territory Gibraltar decided on Thursday 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 in darkness off the coast of the territory at the western mouth of the Mediterranean on July 4, on suspicion of violating European Union sanctions by taking oil to Syria, a close ally of Iran.
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Two weeks later, Iran seized a British-flagged tanker in the Strait of Hormuz leading into the Persian Gulf.
Gibraltar Chief Minister Fabian Picardo said he 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.
"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," Picardo said.
Iran's Foreign Ministry said the country made no commitments to gain the release of its tanker, reiterating Tehran's claim the Grace 1 was never bound for Syria as alleged by its captors.
"Iran has made no commitment for the release of the Grace 1 tanker. As we said earlier … Syria was not its destination and we have upheld the same … and reiterated that it was nobody's business even if it was Syria," Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi was quoted as saying by the Tasnim news agency.
However, Gibraltar officials did not make clear whether the US legal bid would mean the ship would have to be detained further or, if so, for how long.
"Separately, the United States Department of Justice has requested that a new legal procedure for the detention of the vessel should be commenced," Picardo said. "That is a matter for our independent Mutual Legal Assistance authorities who will make an objective, legal determination of that request for separate proceedings."
In a statement, the US State Department said that the United States had determined the ship was helping Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, which Washington has designated as a terrorist organization.
"In the case of the M/T Grace 1, we will continue to act consistent with our existing policies concerning those who provide material support to the IRGC," the State Department said.
Iran said the ship would sail shortly, and Foreign Minister Mohammad Zarif characterized the US bid to prevent it from leaving as "piracy."
"Having failed to accomplish its objectives through its #EconomicTerrorism — including depriving cancer patients of medicine — the US attempted to abuse the legal system to steal our property on the high seas," he tweeted.
"America desperately tried to block the release of the tanker at the last minute, but faced a miserable defeat," Iran's ambassador to Britain, Hamid Baeidinejad, said on Twitter. "All preparations are done for the tanker to sail into open waters, and the vessel will soon leave Gibraltar."
The tanker remains anchored, witnesses said, though its prow has moved around by at least 180 degrees. It was unclear whether that was due to the strong sea currents off Gibraltar or if it could be preparing to sail.
The State Department responded to the move by saying it would revoke US visas for crew members on an Iranian oil tanker that was seized by authorities in Gibraltar for sanctions violations but released Thursday.
The department says in a statement it intends to fully enforce all US sanctions related to Iranian oil exports despite the decision by Gibraltar to allow the ship to leave. The Grace 1 was seized last month on suspicion of transporting Iranian oil to Syria in violation of European sanctions. Such deliveries are also barred by US sanctions.
Jalil Eslami, deputy head of Iran's Ports and Maritime Organization, told the semi-official Mehr news agency the Grace 1 would head to "Mediterranean ports," citing "an announcement by the owner of the tanker." Eslami did not identify the owner.
Britain's Foreign Office said Iran must abide by its pledge that the ship would not sail for Syria. There was "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," it added in a statement.
Several diplomatic sources have said Britain seized the vessel at the request of the United States, although Gibraltar denies that it was ordered to do so.
Although Britain and Iran have both denied that they would swap the tankers for each other, there has been a widespread expectation that the British-flagged Stena Impero will not be freed until the Iranian tanker is released.
In a statement hours after a Gibraltar court released the Grace 1, UK authorities insisted they would not allow Iran or anyone else to bypass European Union sanctions meant to punish Syria for using chemical weapons against its own people.
But the UK also insisted that there should be "no comparison or linkage" between the enforcement of sanctions and "Iran's unacceptable and illegal seizure of, and attacks on, commercial shipping vessels in the Strait of Hormuz."
Erik Hanell, CEO and president of the owner of the Stena Impero, Stena Bulk, said, "any event which contributes in any way" to getting the crew of its ship free in Iran "must be viewed as positive."
European countries including Britain strongly disapproved of Trump's abandonment of the 2015 nuclear deal, an international agreement that guaranteed Iran access to trade in return for curbs to its nuclear program.
The Trump administration has imposed sanctions on Iran with the aim of halting its oil exports altogether. European countries have lifted sanctions against Iran itself though they still have a ban on selling oil to Syria, in place since 2011.
Britain, which has insisted its Iran policy will not change under new Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who took office last month, has repeatedly indicated it wants a compromise over the tanker.
US national security adviser John Bolton visited London from Sunday to Tuesday, offering US help on Britain's exit from the EU, due on Oct. 31. Britain has announced plans to join a US-led maritime security mission in the Gulf.
